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BV  4647  .P3  M3  1870 
Macduff,  John  R.  1818-1895. 
Able  to  save 


"ABLE  TO  SAVE:" 


OB, 


ENCOURAGEMENTS  TO  PATIENT  WAITING. 


amorfe*  bg  tje  ^utfjor  of  "  &§z  $at{jroarj  of  Promise. 


7V*^    Throne    of    Grace, 

Small  8vo,  neat  cloth  antique,  2s.  6d. 
II. 

li  Able  to  Save;" 

ENCOURAGEMENT  TO  PATIENT  WAITING. 
Small  8vo,  neat  cloth  antique,  2s.  66, 

in. 

The  Pathzvay  of  Promise. 

Neat  cloth  antique,  is.  6d. 
IV. 

Loving  Counsels. 

iSmo,  sewed,  Cd. 


STRAHAN  &  CO.,  56  LUDGATE  HILL 


ABLE   TO    SAVE 


Encouragement  to  patient  n&aiting 


BY  THE  AUTHOR  OF 

THE   PATHWAY   OF   PROMISE 


STRAHAN    &    CO.,    PUBLISHERS 

56  LUDGATE  HILL,  LONDON 

1870 


[  Thirtieth  TJiousa?id.  ] 


PRINTED  BY  BALLANTYNE  AND  COMPANY 
EDINBURGH  AND  LONDON 


The  Author  begs  co  return  his  grateful  thanks  to  the  Rev. 
Dr  J.  S.  B.  Monsell,  who  has  so  kindly  allowed  his  Poems 
in  "  Parish  Musings  "  to  be  made  use  of  in  this  volume  :  as 
also  to  those  other  Christian  friends  whose  names  are  not 
here  mentioned,  but  whose  writings  have  contributed  to 
enrich  the  pages  which  follow. 

May  the  effort  "  to  speak  a  word  to  him  that  is  weary  " 
be  attended  with  the  Divine  blessing,  and  may  many  of 
God's  tried  and  suffering  ones  realise  in  their  hours  of  weak- 
ness, pain,  and  distress,  the  soothing,  elevating,  and  strength- 
ening power  which  lies  in  Christian  poetry ! 

In  preparing  the  Prayers,  advantage  haB  to  some  extent 
been  taken  of  materials  already  existing  in  other  works,  both 
ancient  and  modern.  But  they  have  been  so  frequently 
altered  and  corrected,  and  so  often  re- written,  that  it  is  now 
impossible  to  separate  those  portions  which  are  derived  or 
copied  from  the  rest. 


TO 

JAMES  TETLEY,  Esq.,  M.D.,  Ac.  Ac., 
TORQUAY. 

My  very  Dear  Friend, 

To  you,  with  a  grateful  heart,  I  dedicate 
this  volume.  It  was  composed  at  intervals,  during  a 
period  of  much  suffering,  and  while  I  was  under  your 
kind  and  watchful  care  as  a  physician.  My  desire  has 
therefore  been,  that  it  should  remain  associated  with 
your  name. 

It  will  serve,  in  some  degree,  to  express  my  deep 
sense  of  obligation  for  the  unceasing  kindness  I  ex- 
perienced from  you  during  my  residence  at  Torquay ; 
and  it  may  at  times  help  to  remind  us  both  of  many 
pleasant  hours,  which,  as  they  passed  by,  strengthened 
more  and  more  firmly  the  bonds  of  affection  and  of 
Christian  fellowship  between  us. 

I  know  how  earnest  is  your  desire,  and  how  unremit- 
ting are  your  endeavours,  to  become  the  instrument 
of  healing  to  the  body,  and  of  imparting  comfort  to  the 
soul, — of  leading  the  tried  and  suffering  one  to  the 
only  Healer  of  humanity — the  great  Physician  ;  and 
withdrawn  as  I  have  been,  in  the  providence  of  God 


vm 


from  my  accustomed  sphere  of  duty,  I  long  to  be  a 
u  fellow-labourer "  with  you  in  the  latter  part  of  your 
Christian  work. 

If,  through  the  blessing  of  the  Eternal  Spirit,  this 
volume  shall  convey  to  any  child  of  affliction  one  gleam 
of  soothing  and  hope,  it  will  impart  additional  sweet- 
ness to  the  dealings  of  our  heavenly  Father,  to  whom 
all  glory  shall  be  ascribed,  even  to  Him  "  who  comfort- 
eth  us  in  all  our  tribulations,  that  we  may  be  able  to 
comfort  them  which  are  in  any  trouble,  by  the  comfort 
wherewith  we  ourselves  are  comforted  of  God." 

So  may  grace  be  imparted  to  us  to  improve  the 
various  dealings  of  our  heavenly  Father — that  our 
hearts  may  be  purified — our  affections  raised  to  the 
things  which  are  above,  and  our  earthly  will  brought 
into  conformity  with  the  will  of  God.  May  we  be  kept 
by  faith  ever  looking  up  to  Christ — dwelling  in  Him 
and  He  in  us — so  that  "beholding,  with  open  face,  as 
in  a  glass  the  glory  of  the  Lord,  we  all  may  be  changed 
into  the  same  image  from  glory  to  glory,  even  as  by 
the  Spirit  of  the  Lord." 

Yours  in  Christian  love, 

J.  A.  M. 


Torquay,  March  1863- 


"  It  is  not  in  the  summer-tide  of  life 
That  the  heart  hoards  its  treasures ;  it  la  when 
The  storm  is  loud,  and  the  rude  hurricane 
Of  sorrow  is  abroad ; — when  solemn  strife, 
Such  as  may  move  the  souls  of  constant  men, 
Is  struggling  in  our  bosoms,  it  is  then 
The  heart  collects  her  stores  with  wisdom  rife. 

"  For  sadness  teaches  us  the  truth  of  things 
Which  had  been  hid  beneath  the  crown  of  flowers 
Which  gladness  wears ;  and  the  few  silent  hours 
Of  quiet  heavenward  thought  which  sorrow  brings, 
Are  better  than  a  life  in  pleasure's  bowers, 
Drinking  the  poisonous  chalice  which  she  pours 
To  quench  our  heavenlier  spirits'  murmurings." 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

I.  THE  CHASTENING  ROD, 

1 

II.   VAIN  IS  THE  HELP  OF  MAN, 

15 

HL   THE  CRY  OF  DISTRESS,             .               . 

27 

IV.   PAST  JOYS,     .... 

,       43 

V.   SUBMISSION, 

.       63 

VI.   "  THOU  ART  MY  GOD," 

.      81 

VH.  THE  REMEMBRANCER, 

97 

VDJ.   NOT  FORSAKEN,           . 

115 

IX.   BE  NOT  AFRAID, 

131 

X.  IF  NEED  BE, 

149 

XI.   HEAVIER  SORROWS,  . 

167 

XII.  SUNSHINE,      .... 

185 

Xffl.   GRACE  SUFFICIENT,   . 

205 

XIV.  IF  THE  LORD  WILL,    . 

219 

XV.  THE  SWELLING  OF  JORDAN, 

233 

XVL  BEARING  FRUIT,          . 

247 

XVCL   CHRISTIAN  JOY,           -               .               .               . 

265 

XVIH.   CONTENTMENT,          . 

289 

L 

Cije  Cljastetung  iRofc, 


Job  v.  17. 

M  Behold,  happy  is  the  man  whom  God  correcteth :  therefore 
despise  not  thou  the  chastening  of  the  Almighty." 

Happiness  I  How  little  does  the  word  mean 
when  used  in  its  ordinary  sense  I  We  gene- 
rally esteem  those  happy  who  enjoy  uninter- 
rupted health,  and  are  apt  to  imagine  that  all 
happiness  is  gone  when  they  are  laid  on  a  bed 
of  sickness.  But  it  is  not  so.  To  many  of 
God's  children  the  time  of  sore  trial  has  been 
a  time  of  peace  and  joy, — a  time  to  which  they 
have  looked  back  with  the  deepest  gratitude. 
Not  that  sickness  is  in  itself  desirable,  but  it  is 
precious.  In  the  buoyancy  of  health,  when  our 
sky  is  clear — our  sun  shining  brilliantly — and 
our  hearts  are  full  of  hope — oh,  how  prone  are 
we  to  forget  our  true  character  of  "  strangers 
and  pilgrims  "  here  !  how  insidiously  does  the 
world  entwine  itself  around  our  heart-strings! 
and  how  slowly  do  we  advance  in  our  heaven- 
ward journey.  But  when  the  sky  is  darkened, 
and  the  heaw  clouds  are  rolling  overhead, — 


4  THE  CHASTENING  ROD. 

when  we  are  laid  prostrate, — weak  and  helpless, 
— then  is  it  that  we  are  brought  to  realise  the 
frailty  of  our  nature,  and  to  become  conscious 
of  the  truth  that  "  this  is  not  our  rest/' 

In  the  midst  of  our  heedlessness,  God  sum- 
mons us  to  an  audience.  He  who  knows  the 
secrets  of  all  hearts  has  seen  that  within  us 
which  must  be  corrected.  He  has  discovered 
us  wandering,  and  He  would  bring  us  back. 
He  has  watched  us  paying  our  homage  to  the 
creature,  and  He  would  remind  us  of  our  duty 
to  Him, — the  Creator.  He  has  noticed  the 
gradual  yielding  of  the  heart's  affections  to 
things  "  seen  and  temporal,"  and  He  would 
have  us  give  more  earnest  heed  to  the  things 
"  unseen  and  eternal." 

"  Happy  is  the  man  whom  God  correcteth." 
Yes,  assuredly,  because  it  is  a  proof  that  He 
careth  for  us.  We  are  not  left  to  wander  on 
without  a  Father's  care,  but  when  our  steps  are 
fast  nearing  dangerous  ground,  His  hand  of 
love  is  outstretched; — when  we  are  like  to 
stumble  on  the  dark  mountains,  He  points  to 
the  path  of  safety; — when  the  siren  voice  is 
alluring  us  farther  and  farther  away,  He  sum- 
mons us  back,  and   Himself    condescends  to 


THE  CHASTENING  ROD.  5 

become  our  guide.  But  He  will  not  commune 
with  us  in  the  midst  of  our  heedlessness  and 
folly.  He  must  first  draw  us  aside, — away 
from  the  scenes  in  which  we  foolishly  delighted, 
away  from  the  companions  who  were  making 
us  as  worldly  as  themselves, — away  even  from 
our  daily  occupation; — He  would  have  us  be 
alone  with  Him. 

We  are  laid  on  a  sick-bed, — health  vanishes 
like  a  dream, — friends  begin  to  look  anxious, 
— and  we  are  made  to  pass  through  days  and 
nights  of  weariness  and  pain.  All  nature  wears 
a  gloom  around  us.  The  sun  still  shines,  but, 
for  us,  he  is  draped  in  sadness, — the  flowers 
still  bloom,  but  we  cannot  enjoy  their  fragrance, 
— the  seasons  change,  but  they  seem  ever  tend- 
ing towards  dreary  winter. 

This  is  the  trial-time  of  sickness.  There  is 
much  to  be  endured, — much  to  be  struggled 
against.  Hard  thoughts  enter  into  the  soul, — 
tempting,  sinful,  unholy  thoughts,  —  which 
would  lead  us  to  question  God's  goodness  and 
mercy ; — as  if  He  took  delight  in  the  sufferings 
and  sorrows  of  men. 

At  such  a  time  there  is  little  peace  or  com- 
fort— and  often  those  who  wish  to  advise  and 


6  THE  CHASTENING  BOD. 

comfort  come  too  soon.  We  cannot,  as  yet, 
feel  that  "all  is  well;" — we  are  not,  as  yet, 
happy  in  being  corrected.  They  would  have 
us  at  once  "  be  of  good  cheer,"  but  it  may  not 
be. 

And,  methinks,  God  does  not  intend  we 
should.  We  must  be  brought  to  solemn 
thought, — to  heart-searching, — to  earnest,  im- 
portunate prayer.  The  love  of  the  world  must 
be  weakened,  the  cords  which  knit  our  heart- 
strings must  be  snapt  asunder,  the  longings  for 
earth's  giddy  joys  must  be  driven  from  the  soul, 
ere  we  can  have  the  "  happiness"  of  a  corrected 
child.  But  when  again  we  turn  "with  our 
whole  heart  to  the  Lord,"  feeling  not  only  that 
it  is  a  Father's  hand  which  has  been  laid  on 
us,  but  that  that  Father  desires  by  this  cor- 
rection to  draw  us  more  closely  to  Himself, 
then  does  He  impart  His  promised  peace ;  then 
does  He  give  strength  to  bear  meekly  the  bur- 
den laid  upon  us;  and  then,  above  all,  is  the 
blessed  assurance  realised,  "  Fear  not,  I  am 
still  with  thee;  I  will  not  leave  thee  nor  for- 
sake thee." 

Oh  1  who  shall  say  that  the  "  chastening 
time "  is  not  a  precious  one  when  such  is  the 


THE  CHASTENING  ROD.  7 

blessed  result?  who  will  for  a  moment  doubt 
the  happiness  of  the  tried  one  when  thus  "  the 
light  of  his  Father's  countenance  has  been 
lifted  up,"  and  the  Lord  has  "strengthened  him 
upon  the  bed  of  languishing  ?" 

Fellow-sufferers  1  we  may  not  all  of  us  have 
realised  this  blessed  condition  as  ours; — we 
may  be  still  under  the  cloud ; — as  yet  the 
struggle  may  be  only  going  on.  Let  us  not 
give  way  to  despair.  Let  us  hope  on,  let  us 
pray  for  grace  to  see  God's  hand  in  our  sick- 
ness, to  acknowledge  that  "  of  very  faithfulness 
He  has  afflicted  us,"  and  to  learn  those  lessons 
He  designs  to  teach  us.  Let  us  wait  on  the 
Lord.  He  will  not  long  delay  His  coming.  In 
some  blessed  way  He  will  answer  us.  If  He 
withhold  the  blessing  of  health,  He  will  give 
the  more  precious  one  of  His  own  presence.  If 
He  see  meet  to  continue  our  pain  and  suffering, 
He  will  impart  strength  equal  to  bear  them. 
If  He  prolong  the  time  of  bodily  weakness,  He 
will  convey  to  the  soul  spiritual  nourishment, 
and  "  strengthen  us  with  all  might  in  the  inner 
man," 

Father  of  mercies,  and  God  of  all  comfort,  to* 


8  THE  CHASTENING  ROD. 

whom  belong  the  issues  of  life  and  death,  look 
down  with  compassion  upon  Thy  frail  and 
afflicted  servant.  Oh,  enable  me  to  acknow- 
ledge the  mercy  of  Thy  dispensations,  and, 
without  murmuring  or  doubting,  to  accept  all 
things  as  coming  from  Thee.  Give  me  strength 
against  all  my  temptations,  and  patience  under 
all  my  sufferings.  In  the  midst  of  all  my  fears 
and  anxieties,  I  would  give  Thee  thanks  for 
Thy  sparing  mercy.  I  have  grievously  sinned, 
0  Lord,  and  merit  Thy  hot  displeasure.  But  I 
would  cast  myself  wholly  upon  Thy  mercy  in 
Christ  Jesus.  Oh,  hear  me  in  the  day  of 
trouble.  Send  help  from  Thy  sanctuary,  and 
strengthen  me  out  of  Zion.  Give  me  grace,  0 
Lord,  in  remembrance  of  Thy  past  loving-kind- 
ness, so  to  trust  in  Thy  goodness,  to  submit  to 
Thy  wisdom,  and  meekly  to  bear  what  Thou 
thinkest  fit  to  lay  upon  me,  that  I  may  be 
brought  to  say  at  the  last,  "  It  was  good  for  me 
that  I  was  afflicted." 

Grant  this  measure  of  grace  unto  Thy  ser- 
vant for  the  sake  of  Jesus  Christ,  Thy  Son. — 
Amen. 


TEE  CHASTENING  ROD. 


"  Thy  way  is  in  the  sea,  and  Thy  path  in  the  great  waters,  and 
Thy  footsteps  are  not  known." — Ps.  lxxvii.  19. 

I  ask'd  for  grace  to  lift  me  high 
Above  the  world's  depressing  cares ; 

God  sent  me  sorrows  ; — with  a  sigh 
I  said,  He  has  not  heard  my  prayers. 

I  ask'd  for  light,  that  I  might  see 
My  path  along  life's  thorny  road  ; 

But  clouds  and  darkness  shadow'd  me, 
When  I  expected  light  from  God. 

I  ask'd  for  peace,  that  I  might  rest, 

To  think  my  sacred  duties  o'er  ; 
When  lo  !  such  horrors  fill'd  my  breast 

As  I  had  never  felt  before. 

And  oh,  I  cried,  can  this  be  prayer, 

Whose  plaints  the  steadfast  mountains  move, 
Can  this  be  heaven's  prevailing  care, — 

And,  0  my  God,  is  this  Thy  love  ? 

But  soon  I  found  that  sorrow,  worn 
As  Duty's  garment,  strength  supplies  ; 

And  out  of  darkness,  meekly  borne, 
Unto  the  righteous  light  doth  rise. 


10         THE  CHASTENING  ROD. 

And  soon  I  found  that  fears,  which  stirr'd 
My  startled  soul  God's  will  to  do, 

On  me  more  real  peace  conferr'd 
Than  in  life's  calm  I  ever  knew. 

Then,  Lord,  in  Thy  mysterious  ways, 
Lead  my  dependent  spirit  on  ; 

And  whensoe'er  it  kneels  and  prays, 
Let  it  but  say,—"  Thy  will  be  done." 

Let  its  one  thought,  one  hope,  one  prayer, 
Thine  image  seek — Thy  glory  see  ; 

Let  every  other  grief  and  care 
Be  left  confidingly  to  Thee  ! 

J.  S.  B.  Monsell. 


NEARER  TO  THEE. 

Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee, 
Nearer  to  Thee ! 

E'en  though  it  be  a  cross 
That  raiseth  me, 

Still  all  my  song  shall  be — 

"  Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee, 
Nearer  to  Thee." 


THE  CHASTENING  BOD,         11 

Though  like  a  wanderer, 

The  sun  gone  down, 
Darkness  comes  over  me — 

My  rest  a  stone ; 
Yet  in  my  dreams  I  '11  be 
Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee, 

Nearer  to  Thee. 

Then  let  the  way  appear 

Steps  unto  heaven, 
All  that  Thou  sendest  me, 

In  mercy  given, 
Angels  to  beckon  me, 
Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee, 

Nearer  to  Thee. 

Or  if  on  joyful  wing 

Cleaving  the  sky, 
Sun,  moon,  and  stars  forgot, 

Upwards  I  fly, 
Still  all  my  song  shall  be — 
u  Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee, 

Nearer  to  Thee." 

Carey. 


12         THE  CHASTENING  ROD. 


PAINFUL  DISCIPLINE. 

Sustain  me.  Lord,  and  let  me  neither  shrink 
Nor  scorn  the  rod  of  painful  discipline, 

The  cup  my  Father  gives  me  I  would  drink, 
And  bend  my  will  submissively  to  Thine. 

I  know  the  cross  is  needful,  and  I  know 

In  love,  and  not  in  wrath,  Thou  chastenest ; 

The  sufferings  Thy  children  undergo 
But  fit  them  sooner  for  eternal  rest 

Our  days  are  number  d ;  God  alone  can  see 
The  end  from  the  beginning.     He  alone 

Sees  on  the  wide  plains  of  futurity 

The  fruitage  of  the  seeds  our  hands  have  sown. 

Let  us  walk  softly,  for  our  God  we  bear 

Much  precious  seed  committed  to  our  trust ; 

Water  d  with  tears,  and  cherish'd  with  due  care. 
It  will  spring  forth  in  beauty  from  the  dust* 

Deep  are  the  chastenings  that  our  spirits  need, 
To  wean  them  from  the  idolatry  of  earth ; 

Our  flesh  must  tremble,  and  our  hearts  must 
bleed, 
Ere  life  can  yield  us  fruits  of  any  worth. 


THE  CHASTENING  ROD.         13 

Are  there  not  idols  which  usurp  the  throne 
Where  God  alone  should  sit  ?     How  many  a 
heart 

Bows  down,  if  not  before  a  god  of  stone, 
Before  a  living,  breathing  counterpart ! 

Some  cherish'd  hope,  or  some  perplexing  care, 
Follows  our  worldly  hearts  where'er  we  go, 

And  ghost-like  haunts  the  holy  house  of  prayer 
When  we  would  gladly  turn  from  all  below ! 

Oh,  pity  us,  kind  Father,  and  forgive 

The  weakness  of  our  flesh,  which  overpowers 

Our  best  intentions,  and  do  Thou  receive, 
For  Jesus'  sake,  these  sinful  hearts  of  ours. 

Raise  our  affections  higher,  let  us  find 
Enough  to  satisfy  our  souls  in  Thee, 

And  help  us  to  resign  with  willing  mind 
Whatever  tempts  us  to  idolatry. 

The  Dove  on  the  Cross. 


Fain  is  tfoe  $np  of  Jttan. 


Psalm  cxlvi.  8. 

*  Put  not  your  trust  in  the  son  of  man,  in  whom  there  ia  no 
help." 

In  one  sense  we  are  very  dependent  on  each 
other.  How  does  the  infant  cling  to  the  arm 
of  its  mother  I  and  how  do  we  in  sickness  trust 
to  the  care  and  kindness  of  a  faithful  attendant  I 
In  every  relation  of  life  we  are  comforted,  up- 
held, sustained  by  those  around  us — and  espe- 
cially is  this  the  case  in  the  family  of  Christ. 
Every  member  feels  it  is  his  solemn  duty  to 
support  the  weak, — to  gladden  the  sorrowful, — 
to  console  the  mourner.  If  he  does  not,  he  has 
not  the  mind  of  Christ, — he  has  not  been  drink- 
ing in  the  spirit  of  Him  who  came  "  to  bind  up 
the  broken-hearted,  and  to  pour  the  balm  of 
consolation  into  the  wounded  spirit." 

The  help  we  are  sometimes  privileged  to  give 
one  another  is  very  precious.  The  kindly 
look; — how  often  has  it  chased  sadness  from 
the  brow,  even  as  the  bright  ray  of  sunshine 
chases  the  dark  cloud  from  the  heavens  !     The 


18     VAIN  IS  THE  HELP  OF  MAN. 

word  of  sympathy  ; — how  often  has  it  sounded 
in  the  secret  chambers  of  the  soul, — awakening 
gladness,  where  all  was  silence  and  gloom  1 
And  who  shall  tell  how  often  God's  sweet  pro- 
mises, whispered  gently  by  the  sick-bed,  have 
calmed  and  tranquillised  the  troubled  soul,  even 
as  of  old  the  words  of  Jesus,  "  Peace,  be  still," 
soothed  the  tempestuous  billows,  so  that  "  im- 
mediately there  was  a  great  calm  !  " 

But  in  another  and  higher  sense,  it  is  true 
that  "  vain  is  the  help  of  man."  We  can  only 
effectually  help  each  other  when  we  are  "instru- 
ments in  God's  hand."  He  makes  use  of  us  as 
His  servants,  and  when  we  feel  and  realise  our 
responsibility  as  such,  then  our  feeble  efforts 
are  blessed,  and  we  become  "  sons  of  consola- 
tion." Apart  from  this,  of  what  avail  is  it  that 
the  physician  prescribes,  or  that  the  minister 
visits  the  chamber  of  sickness?  Health  will 
not  return  at  the  bidding  of  the  one,  nor  com- 
fort flow  from  the  exhortations  of  the  other.  It 
matters  not  that  there  is  the  exercise  of  the 
highest  skill,  and  the  utterance  of  the  most 
thrilling  eloquence.  Still  the  burden  of  disease 
will  bear  down  the  body,  and  the  load  of 
anxiety  oppress  the  spirit.     But  when  the  Di- 


VAIN  IS  THE  HELP  OF  MAN    19 

vine  blessing  is  vouchsafed,  and  the  Spirit  pours 
forth  His  promised  influence,  all  is  changed. 
The  pulse  beats  again  with  health, — the  soul  is 
freed  from  its  agitations  and  alarms. 

Shall  I,  then,  "  trust  in  the  son  of  man?" 
Nay,  rather,  shall  I  not  trust  in  Him  who  alone 
"hath  the  issues  of  life  and  death?"  My 
heart  may  be  filled  with  gratitude  and  love  to 
those  who  have  been  the  "  instruments  in  God's 
hand,"  and  they  may  become  dear  to  me  even 
as  my  own  flesh ;  but  I  will  not  "  put  my  trust" 
in  them  :  I  will  look  higher  far — to  Htm  who 
has  promised  to  watch  over  me  with  a  Father's 
care,  and  whose  power  nothing  can  withstand. 
I  will  look  to  Him  who  is  seated  as  my  Advo- 
cate and  Elder  Brother  at  the  Father's  right 
hand,  and  who  has  promised  to  "  undertake  for 
me,"  and  to  plead,  in  my  behalf,  the  merits  of 
His  own  most  precious  blood.  I  will  look  to 
Him  who  alone  can  carry  home  the  truth  to  my 
heart,  even  the  Comforting  Spirit, — at  whose 
bidding  doubt  and  fear  must  vanish,  and  hope 
and  joy  take  possession  of  my  soul. 

Yes,  suffering  child !  it  is  ever  well  to  look 
beyond  the  creature;  to  realise  the  fact  that 
only  one  Arm  is  all-powerful, — one  Heart  all- 


20     VAIN  IS  THE  HELP  OF  MAN. 

loving, — one  Ear  ever  open. — one  Eye  never 
closed ; — and  that  to  Him,  and  Him  alone, 
"  the  secrets  and  sorrows,  the  wants  and  desires 
of  the  heart,"  are  known.  Just  as  far  as  we 
trace  God's  hand  in  what  our  fellow-creatures 
do  in  our  behalf,  earthly  love  and  sympathy 
and  kindness  will  be  helpful  and  comforting  to 
us.  When  we  forget  or  overlook  this,  we  will 
fail  to  derive  any  benefit, — any  lasting  comfort 
from  their  efforts. 

And  there  are  paths  of  suffering  and  trial  into 
which  sometimes  God  calls  His  children,  where 
the  dearest  friend  cannot  follow, — where  no 
word  of  human  sympathy  can  reach  the  trem- 
bling, solitary  pilgrim.  Every  step  must  be 
trodden,  either  alone,  in  darkness  and  terror,  or, 
— oh  !  blessed  companionship, — with  a  heavenly 
Friend  and  Guide,  whose  accents  of  love  will 
fall  sweetly  on  the  ear,  and  calm  the  storm  of 
agitation  and  alarm.  Our  heavenly  Father 
will  not, — if  we  unreservedly  cast  ourselves  on 
His  care, — permit  any  enemy  however  power- 
ful, any  trial  however  great,  to  crush  or  over- 
whelm us.  He  will  give  us  "help  from  trouble," 
when  "vain  is  the  help  of  man."  He  will  be 
our  "  hiding-place,"  and  will  "  compass  us  about 


VAIN  IS  THE  HELP  OF  MAN.    21 

with  songs  of  deliverance."  He  will  "  go  be- 
fore us,  and  make  crooked  places  straight,  rough 
places  plain." 

But,  if  we  desire  to  have  it  so,  we  must  relin- 
quish creature-confidence,  and  put  our  "  trust 
in  the  Lord."  "We  must  say  with  David,  "  He 
is  my  refuge,  and  my  fortress;  my  God.-  in 
Him  will  I  trust."  "  I  will  lift  up  mine  eyes 
unto  the  hills  from  whence  cometh  my  help. 
My  help  cometh  from  the  Lord,  which  made 
heaven  and  earth."  "  It  is  better  to  trust  in  the 
Lord  than  to  put  confidence  in  man.  It  is 
better  to  trust  in  the  Lord  than  to  put  confix 
dence  in  princes."  This,  indeed,  is  the  great 
lesson  which  God  designs  to  teach  His  children, 
to  lead  them  through  the  chequered  experience  of 
life,  to  realise  more  and  more  that  He  is  the  only 
true,  satisfying  portion  of  their  souls, — the  only 
safe  refuge  and  resting-place  "  in  time  of  trouble." 

And,  oh!  surely,  it  is  a  comforting  and 
blessed  thought,  that  "  He  careth  for  us," — that 
all  our  concerns  are  full  of  interest  in  His  sight. 
Our  fellow-men  may  refuse  their  sympathy.  He 
never  will.  Tliey  may  be  distant  from  us  in 
the  hour  of  need.  He  is  "  a  present  help  in  the 
time  of  trouble."     They  may  be  occupied  and 


22     VAIN  IS  THE  HELP  OF  MAX. 

engrossed  with  self.  His  ear  "  is  ever  open  to 
our  cry."  They  may  become  wearied  of  helping 
us.  He  is  ever  "  touched  by  our  infirmities," 
and  ever  ready  to  heal  our  woes.  Let  us,  then, 
with  feelings  of  increasing  love  and  gratitude, 
as  we  meditate  on  the  care  of  our  heavenly 
Father,  reveal  to  Him  all  our  wants  and  weak- 
nesses, all  our  sorrows  and  anxieties,  all  our  sins 
and  shortcomings ;  assured  that,  of  His  infinite 
mercy,  He  will  bestow  upon  us  pardon,  peace, 
help,  hope,  and  joy. 

Heavenly  Father,  I  would  draw  near  unto 
Thee  with  humble  confidence,  in  the  name  of 
Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.  I  thank  Thee  for  all 
Thy  past  goodness,  for  Thy  watchful  provi- 
dence, Thine  unceasing  care.  I  bless  Thee  for 
the  gracious  offers  of  mercy  which  Thou  hast 
given  me,  and  I  pray  that  Thou  wouldst  enable 
me  to  place  all  my  confidence  in  Him  whom 
Thou  hast  sent  to  seek  and  save  the  lost.  Oh, 
may  His  precious  blood  wash  out  the  dark  stain 
of  sin  from  my  soul.  Blessed  Saviour,  make 
me  Thine  in  heart  and  soul.  Oh,  give  me  Thy 
Spirit.  May  He  purify  my  nature  and  impress 
Thine  image  on  my  heart. 


VAIN  IS  THE  HELP  OF  MAN    23 

Help  me,  0  Lord,  in  this  time  of  sickness, 
to  look  up  to  Thee  as  my  only  help.  Keep  me 
from  all  repining  thoughts,  and,  in  remembrance 
of  Thy  past  loving-kindness,  help  me  now  to 
trust  in  Thy  goodness  and  to  submit  to  Thy 
will.  Make  me  patient,  humble,  and  resigned, 
and  enable  me  to  bring  forth  more  fruit  to  Thy 
glory.  Strengthen  me  ever,  to  show  the  power 
of  Thy  grace,  in  my  humility,  gentleness,  love, 
and  gratitude,  to  all  who  help  my  infirmities 
and  show  kindness  to  me.  May  I  ever  regard 
them  as  instruments  in  Thy  hands,  and  able  to 
bring  me  comfort  according  to  Thy  pleasure. 
Give  me,  0  God,  a  simple,  entire  dependence 
upon  Thee,  and  enable  me  in  all  things  to  com- 
mit my  way  unto  Thee,  through  Jesus  Christ 
our  Lord  and  Saviour. — Amen. 


'/  will  mention  the  loving-Tcindnesses  of  the  Lord"- 
Isa.  Lsiii.  7. 

My  God,  my  Saviour,  sweet  to  be 
Dependent  every  hour  on  Thee  ! 
Amid  life's  bitterness,  how  sweet 
Thy  loving-kindnesses  to  me^t  1 


24     VAIN  IS  THE  HELP  OF  MAN 

Sweet  to  hold  converse  with  Thee,  Lord ! 
And  hear  Thee  answer  by  Thy  Word ; 
Thy  love  in  all  my  life  to  trace, 
And  live  that  life — the  child  of  grace. 

To  feel  the  very  light  and  glow 

Of  heaven's  own  gladness  here  below  ; 

And  drink  those  sparkling  streams,  whose  rill* 

Kise  'mid  the  everlasting  hills ! 

None,  walking  as  Thy  Word  hath  taught, 
Have  ever  sought,  and  found  Thee  not ; 
Or  brought  to  Thee  a  single  care, 
Thou  didst  not  either  take  or  share. 

My  God,  my  Saviour,  grant  that  I 
May  with  Thee  live,  and  in  Thee  die ! 
'Tis  all  my  spirit  asks,  but  less 
Thou  know'st  would  not  be  happiness. 

Parish  Musings. 


GOD  OUR  STRENGTH. 

Man,  in  his  weakness,  needs  a  stronger  stay 
Than  fellow-men,  the  holiest  and  the  best ; 

And  yet  we  turn  to  them  from  day  to  day, 
As  if  in  them  our  spirits  could  find  rest. 


VAIN  IS  THE  HELP  OF  MAN    25 

Gently  untwine  our  childish  hands,  that  cling 
To  such  inadequate  supports  as  these, 

And  shelter  us  beneath  Thy  heavenly  wing, 
Till  we  have  learn'd  to  walk  alone  with  ease. 

Help  us,  0  Lord,  with  patient  love  to  bear 
Each  other's  faults,  to  suffer  with  true  meek- 
ness; 

Help  us  each  other's  joys  and  griefs  to  share, 
But  let  us  turn  to  Thee  alone  in  weakness. 

The  Dove  ox  the  Ckoss. 


PEACE. 


Swollen  as  the  troubled  sea, 
Lord,  I  feel  this  heart  to  be ; 
Eestless  on  account  of  sin, 
Lord,  there  is  no  peace  within. 

Till  Thou  bid  its  passions  cease, 
Lord,  it  never  can  have  peace ; 
Never  change  its  wicked  will, 
Till  Thou  whisper,  "  Peace,  be  still ! 


26     VAIN  IS  THE  HELP  OF  MAN 

Every  idle  hope  begone, 
Speaking  peace  where  there  is  none  ; 
None  but  Jesus,  none  but  He, 
Peace  can  ever  speak  to  me. 

Till  I  feel  my  sins  removed, 
And,  assured  that  I  am  loved, 
Lean  upon  my  Saviour's  breast, 
I  can  never  think  of  rest. 


ni 
ftfje  Crp  <rf  distress. 


2  Sam.  xxii.  7. 

"  In  my  distress  I  called  upon  the  Lord,  and  cried  to  my 
God  :  and  he  did  hear  my  voice  out  of  his  temple,  and 
my  cry  did  enter  into  his  ears." 

It  is  related  of  King  Asa,  that  an  alarming  and 
painful  disease  came  upon  him — he  was  afflicted 
with  a  grievous  bodily  calamity  ;  and  his  illness 
continued  to  increase,  "  until  his  disease  was 
exceeding  great."  Yet,  although  on  a  former 
occasion  he  had  gathered  "  all  Judah  and  Ben- 
jamin, and  the  strangers  with  them,  out  of 
Ephraim  and  Manasseh,  and  out  of  Simeon/' 
and  had  "  entered  into  a  solemn  covenant  with 
them  to  seek  the  Lord  God  of  their  fathers  with 
all  their  heart,  and  with  all  their  soul,"  we  are 
told  that,  when  sickness  came  upon  him,  he  for- 
got his  promise ;  and  this  is  the  melancholy 
declaration  of  Scripture,  "In  his  disease  he 
sought  not  to  the  Lord,  but  to  the  physicians." 
What  a  sad  contrast  between  this  sinful  for- 
getfulness,  and  the  heartfelt  urgency  of  the  royal 
psalmist !     What  wonder  that  the  next  tiling 


30         TEE  CRY  OF  DISTRESS. 

recorded  of  the  one  is  his  death,  and  by  the 
other,  that  the  "  Lord  heard  his  voice,  and  his 
cry  did  enter  into  His  ears."  Asa's  cry  of  dis- 
tress, being  made  only  to  man,  brought  no  relief: 
the  psalmist's  prayer  to  the  Most  High  was  heard 
and  answered. 

Which  of  these  examples  have  we  followed  ? 
When  pain  and  suffering  have  laid  hold  upon 
us,  to  whom,  in  our  extremity,  have  we  made 
our  appeal  ?  Has  it  been  to  feeble,  impotent 
man,  whose  every  effort  is  powerless  without 
God's  blessing  ?  or  has  it  been  to  Him  who,  in 
His  holy  temple,  hearkens  to  the  cry  of  the 
humblest,  the  weakest  of  His  children  ? 

Alas  1  have  we  not  to  acknowledge  that  many 
a  time  in  our  distress  we  have  looked  for  help 
only  to  man  ?  We  have  made  our  appeal  to 
them,  believing  that  they  could  deliver  us,  and 
we  have  wondered  that  the  sickness  was  not  re- 
moved— the  disease  not  cured. 

Asa's  sin  was,  not  his  having  applied  to  the 
physicians,  but  his  having  neglected,  first  of  all, 
"  to  seek  the  Lord."  We  have  been  guilty,  not 
in  having  had  recourse  to  means,  but  in  trusting 
solely  to  their  efficacy. 

Whatever  be  our  danger  or  disease,  we  can 


THE  CRY  OF  DISTRESS.         31 

only  hope  for  deliverance  by  immediately  "call- 
ing upon  the  Lord,  and  crying  to  our  God." 
For  is  not  this  the  end  He  has  in  view  ?  He 
does  not  visit  us  with  sore  calamity  only  to  scare 
and  frighten  us  away  from  Him,  but  that  our 
danger  may  drive  us  to  Him.  He  permits  terror 
to  lay  hold  upon  us  that  we  may  take  refuge  in 
His  arms.  He  suffers  our  faith  to  fail  that  we 
may  cling  more  confidingly  to  His  almighty 
arm.  He  delays  the  removal  of  disease  that  we 
may  become  more  importunate  in  prayer, — that 
we  may  become  more  patient,  resigned,  and  sub- 
missive to  His  will.  When  these  ends  are  ac- 
complished, He  speaks  the  word,  He  dispels  our 
fears,  He  grants  our  desires,  He  answers  our 
prayers. 

"  A  little  while,  through  grief  and  care, 
Thy  servants,  Lord,  their  cross  must  bear : 
Still  let  this  thought  our  hearts  beguile— 
It  is  but  for  a  little  loliile." 

"  The  cry  of  distress."  Oh  I  who  but  a  doubt- 
ing, faithless  one  would  ever  imagine  that  the 
God  of  love  would  be  indifferent  when  it  came 
"  into  His  ears ! "  He,  our  Father,  our  covenant- 
God, — He  "  who  has  not  spared  His  own  Son, 


32         THE  CRY  OF  DISTRESS. 

but  delivered  Him  up  to  the  death  for  us,"  shall 
He  refuse  to  hear  our  cry  when  danger  or  cala- 
mity threatens  to  overwhelm  us  ?  Away  with 
such  doubts  !  "  The  Father  himself  loveth  you, 
because  ye  have  loved  me,"  was  the  assurance  of 
the  Saviour  to  His  disciples ;  and  still  the  same 
words  are  true  regarding  all  who  love  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ.  It  is  in  love  that  He  lays  His 
hand  upon  us,  in  love  that  He  seems  to  deny 
our  prayers,  in  love  that  He  delays  to  send 
"  help  out  of  Zion."  To  the  patient,  ofttimes, 
the  remedies  of  the  physician  are  painful  and 
trying, — he  cannot  realise  how  necessary  it  is 
that  severe  measures  should  be  adopted,  to  check 
the  progress  of  disease, — to  bring  health  to  the 
feeble,  sinking  frame.  So  neither  are  we  able 
to  comprehend  the  necessity  there  is,  that  we 
should  have  to  undergo  the  severe  ordeal  of  sick- 
ness and  trial,  in  order  that  the  inward  malady 
may  be  arrested,  and  the  health  of  the  soul  be 
restored  and  promoted.  He  alone  who  knows 
"  the  end  from  the  beginning"  can  perceive  the 
"  need  be  "  for  painful  discipline, — for  sad  be- 
reavements,— overwhelming  sorrows  and  severe 
reverses.  But  how  many  are  the  recorded  in- 
stances of  "  man's  extremity  "  being  "  God's 


THE  CRY  OF  DISTRESS.         33 

opportunity  !  "  The  believer,  it  may  have 
been,  had  become  self-confident,  unwatchful, — 
less  earnest  in  prayer,  less  distrustful  of  self, 
and  the  afflicting  hand  was  laid  upon  him.  He 
was  withdrawn  from  the  world, — left  to  "  com- 
mune with  his  own  heart  and  make  diligent 
search," — to  review,  in  the  solitariness  of  the 
sick-chamber,  the  devious  path  he  had  been 
treading,  the  slippery  places  on  which  he  had 
been,  too  securely,  standing.  And,  in  this  self- 
examination,  he  found  cause  for  deep  self-abase- 
ment and  humiliation  before  God.  He  was 
brought  to  say  with  David, — "  Have  mercy  upon 
me,  0  God,  according  to  Thy  loving-kindness ; 
according  unto  the  multitude  of  Thy  tender 
mercies,  blot  out  my  transgressions.  Wash  me 
thoroughly  from  mine  iniquity,  and  cleanse  me 
from  my  sin.  For  I  acknowledge  my  trans- 
gressions: and  my  sin  is  ever  before  me/'  Then 
was  it,  that  he  found  peace  restored  and  comfort 
imparted, — then  was  it,  that  he  felt  it  was  "good 
for  him  to  be  afflicted/'  and  realised,  that  in 
"  God's  favour  is  life,"  and  u  His  loving-kindness 
is  better  than  life." 

Suffering  child  of  God  !  this,  too,  may  be  thy 
experience,  but  doubt  not  for  a  moment  the  love. 


34         THE  CRY  OF  DISTRESS. 

the  faithfulness  of  thy  heavenly  Father, — "  com- 
mune with  your  own  heart  upon  your  bed,  and 
be  still."  Murmur  not  against  the  dispensation, 
which,  though  painful,  is  yet  necessary;  but  pray 
that  the  Holy  Spirit  would  sanctify  your  trial, 
and  enable  you,  entirely  and  willingly,  to  surren- 
der yourself  to  God, — to  do  or  suffer,  what  He 
may  see  meet  to  appoint.  Let  thoughts  of  His 
past  loving-Mndness  and  mercy  fill  your  soul, 
and  rest  assured,  that  "  He  will  not  noiu  fail 
you,  nor  forsake  you."  An  immediate  answer  to 
prayer  may  be  withheld, — but,  delay  is  not  denial; 
and,  when  God  stirs  up  His  people  to  call  upon 
Him,  it  is  just  because  He  means  to  grant  their 
desire,  and  in  His  own  good  time — "strengthen 
them  with  all  might,  according  to  His  glorious 
power,  unto  all  patience  and  long-suffering  with 
joyfulness." 

"  Wait  on  the  Lord :  be  of  good  courage,  and 
He  shall  strengthen  thine  heart ;  wait,  I  say.  on 
the  Lord."  "  He  who  has  showed  you  great  and 
sore  troubles  shall  quicken  you  again,  and  bring 
you  up  from  the  depths  of  the  earth ;  He  shall 
increase  your  greatness,  and  comfort  you  on 
every  side."  In  the  full  assurance  of  faith  cast 
yourself  upon  Him,  and  all  shall  be  well.     He 


THE  CRY  OF  DI ST  BESS.         35 

has  not  utterly  forsaken  thee,  for  He  is  even 
now  dealing  with  thee, — and,  so  precious  art 
thou  in  His  sight,  that  every  throb  of  pain, 
every  cry  of  anguish  is  noted  by  Him.  Present 
suffering  is  permitted,  only  that  thy  soul  may  be 
restored  to  health, — be  refined  and  purified  in 
the  furnace,  and  that  heavenly  communion  with 
thy  God  and  Saviour  may,  henceforth,  be  more 
precious,  close,  and  endearing.  "We  must 
through  much  tribulation  enter  the  kingdom;" 
and,  as  the  great  Captain  of  our  Salvation  was 
made  "  perfect  through  sufferings,"  so  must  it 
be  with  every  disciple,  who  would  "walk  even  as 
He  also  walked,"  and  who  desires  to  be  among 
that  blessed  company  of  whom  the  Saviour 
prayed — "  Father,  I  will  that  they  also,  whom 
Thou  hast  given  me,  be  with  me  where  I  am  ; 
that  they  may  behold  my  glory,  which  Thou 
hast  given  me." 

We  might,  indeed,  prefer  ease,  comfort, 
health,  worldly  prosperity, — an  immediate  an- 
swer to  all  our  prayers,  but  the  lesson  must  be 
taught  us,  that  holiness  is  of  more  importance 
than  ease, — the  crucifixion  of  our  wills  than 
bodily  comfort, — and  the  renewal  of  the  soul 
than  health,  prosperity,  or  any  earthly  blessing. 


36         THE  CRY  OF  DISTRESS. 

If,  then,  we  are  still  left  to  tread  the  path  of 
suffering  and  trial; — it  is  not  that  our  "  cry  of 
distress  "  has  been  unheard  ; — it  is  not  that  our 
prayer  for  deliverance  has  been  unheeded,  but 
that  God's  time  has  not  yet  come  for  delivering 
us  out  of  trouble ; — that  He  would  have  us 
drawn  yet  closer  to  Him, — our  hearts  yet  more 
softened  and  sanctified, — every  feeling  of  im- 
patience or  murmuring  subdued,  and  the  Divine 
lineaments  drawn  more  clearly  and  indelibly 
upon  us.  When  this  gracious  work  is  accom- 
plished,— when,  yielding  ourselves  meekly  to 
Him  we  say,  "  Lord,  do  with  me  as  Thou  wilt ; 
I  know  that  Thy  judgments  are  right,  and  that 
in  very  faithfulness  Thou  art  afflicting  me/'  oh, 
then,  we  shall  find,  that  "His  merciful  kindness 
is  for  our  comfort,  according  to  His  word," — 
we  shall  realise,  that  while  scourging,  He  is  also 
supporting, — while  wounding,  He  is  pouring  in 
oil  and  wine, — that,  as  our  sufferings  abound,  so 
our  consolations  abound  also,  and,  that  He  is 
very  pitiful  and  of  tender  mercy.  We  will  take 
up  the  language  of  David,  saying,  "  In  my  dis- 
tress I  called  upon  the  Lord,  and  cried  to  my 
God;  and  He  did  hear  my  voice  out  of  His 
temple,  and  my  cry  did  enter  into  His  ears." 


THE  CRY  OF  DISTRESS.         37 

Observe  the  expression  of  the  Psalmist — 
"  my  God."  He  felt  that,  though  "in  distress," 
God  was  still  Ms  God.  How  similar  to  the 
anguished  cry  of  our  dear  Redeemer  as  He  hung 
upon  the  cross ! — What  suffering  or  sorrow  could 
be  compared  with  that  which  He  then  endured 
for  us  ! — Who  shall  describe  what  is  meant  by 
the  appalling  inquiry,  "  Why  hast  Thou  for- 
saken me?"  Yet,  as  if  no  anguish, — no  sor- 
row,— no  amount  of  suffering,  could,  for  a  single 
moment,  interrupt  the  current  of  love  between 
the  Father  and  the  Son,  the  term  of  tenderest 
endearment  mingles  with  the  notes  of  agony, — 
"  My  God,  my  God,  why  hast  Thou  forsaken 
me  f  "  As  if  He  had  said, — "  Thou  art  still  my 
Father, — that  love  which,  from  eternity,  existed 
between  us,  knows  no  change, — that  communion 
which,  here  on  earth,  has  hitherto  been  uninter- 
rupted, is  uninterrupted  still,  and,  draining  the 
last  dregs  of  the  cup  of  anguish,  I  cry  to  Thee, 
*  My  God,  my  God,  why  hast  Thou  forsaken  me?'" 

Christian !  pray  that  this  spirit  may  be  yours, 
— that,  amid  all  your  sufferings  and  trials,  you 
may  be  able  to  retain  your  trust  and  confidence 
in  God  as  your  God, — your  covenant  God  hi 
Christ.      His  hand  may  be  laid  heavily  upon 


38         THE  CRY  OF  DISTRESS. 

you, — and,  trial  after  trial  may  fall  to  your  lot, 
but  the  tie  which  unites  you  to  your  "  Father 
in  heaven/'  cannot  be  severed  by  such  calamities 
as  these.  "  I  have  loved  thee  with  an  everlast- 
ing love" — is  the  sacred  pledge  that  you  will 
never  be  forsaken, — never  be  without  a  Father's 
care,  or  beyond  the  reach  of  a  Father's  love.  He 
will  mingle  for  you  joy  and  sorrow,  as  He  sees 
best  for  you.  He  will  correct  you  when  you 
need  correction,  and  chasten  you  when  you  need 
chastisement,  but  His  love  towards  you  will  re- 
main unaltered.  And,  onwards  as  you  pursue 
your  heavenward  journey,  you  will  be  strength- 
ened by  His  Almighty  arm, — guided  by  His 
unerring  wisdom, — and  protected  by  His  ever- 
watchful  care.  Still  hope,  still  struggle  on, — 
still  feel  assured,  that  He  will  be  "  mindful "  of 
you,  and  that,  when  His  purposes  with  you  on 
earth  have  been  accomplished,  He  will  conduct 
you  safely  to  His  heavenly  kingdom. 

0  merciful  God,  who  seest  all  our  weakness, 
and  the  troubles  we  labour  under,  have  regard 
unto  the  prayer  of  Thy  servant,  who  now  im- 
plores Thy  comfort,  Thy  direction,  and  Thy 
help.     Grant  me  grace  neither  to  grieve  nor  re- 


THE  CRY  OF  DISTRESS.         39 

pine  under  this  Thy  chastisement.  May  I  be 
enabled  to  regard  my  troubles  as  an  exercise  of 
my  faith,  and  patience,  and  humility ;  and  may 
I  improve  all  my  afflictions  to  the  good  of  my 
soul  and  to  Thy  glory.  Thou  alone  knowest 
what  is  best  for  me.  Let  me  never  dispute  Thy 
goodness  or  wisdom,  but  ever  trust  Thee,  even 
when  I  cannot  trace  Thee.  Oh,  help  me,  good 
Lord,  that  I  may  cheerfully  suffer  and  obedi- 
ently do  Thy  will,  and  choose  what  Thou 
choosest,  and  observe  the  ways  of  Thy  provi- 
dence, and  revere  Thy  judgments,  and  wait  for 
Thy  mercy,  and  delight  in  Thy  dispensations, 
and  expect  that  all  things  shall  work  together 
for  good  to  them  that  love  Thee. 

Grant  this,  0  Father,  through  Jesus  Christ 
our  blessed  Saviour. — Amen. 


"  0  Lord,  I  am  oppressed;  undertake  for  me."- 
Isa.  xxxviii.  14. 

Lord,  I  'm  oppress'd !  oh,  undertake 
For  me,  for  my  Bedeerner's  sake  ! 
"Unclean,  unworthy,  I  confess ; 
Yet,  oh,  accept  His  righteousness  ! 


40         THE  CRY  OF  DISTRESS. 

On  Him  alone  I  dare  repose  ! 

From  Him  alone  my  comfort  flows ; 

And  all  I  am,  or  hope  to  be, 

I  owe,  through  Him,  my  God,  to  Thee  ! 

A  wanderer — His  mercy  sought ! 
A  slave — His  blood  my  freedom  bought ! 
And  dead  in  trespasses  and  sin — 
His  voice  awoke  life's  pulse  within  1 

Hear  such  a  monument  of  grace, 
Presuming  thus  to  seek  Thy  face : 
Accept  my  prayer ;  and  for  Thy  Son, 
Oh,  perfect  Thou  the  work  begun  ! 

Low  at  Thy  footstool,  Lord,  I  He ; 
Smile  on  me  here,  or  else  I  die — 
Smile  on  me  !  nor  let  sin  destroy 
The  bursting  blossoms  of  my  joy. 

Since  faint  and  feeble,  weak  and  low, 
I  cannot  stay,  yet  dare  not  go ; 
I  have  no  strength,  no  hope,  no  plea. 
Unless  Thou  undertake  for  me  ! 

J.   S.    B.    MONSELL. 


THE  CRY  OF  DISTRESS.         41 

Why  restless,  why  so  weary, 

My  soul,  why  so  cast  down  ? 
Is  all  around  so  dreary, 

And  hath  the  cross  no  crown  ? 
Where  is  the  God  who  found  thee, 

Who  once  could  make  thee  glad  ? 
Are  not  His  arms  around  thee, 

Then  wherefore  art  thou  sad  ? 

Oh,  trust  the  Lord  who  bought  thee  ! 

Oh,  trust  the  sinner's  Friend  ! 
The  wondrous  love  that  sought  thee, 

Will  keep  thee  to  the  end ; 
Will  give  a  glorious  morrow 

To  this  thy  night  of  pain, 
And  make  thy  dews  of  sorrow 

Like  "  shining  after  rain  V 

Parish  Musings. 


IV. 

$>ast  fops. 


Lam.  v.  15. 
"  The  joy  of  our  heart  is  ceased." 

The  retrospect  of  the  past,  in  its  power  to  ex- 
cite joy  or  grief,  depends  very  much  on  our 
present  condition.  So  long  as  we  are  prosper- 
ous, we  can  look  back  with  f eelings  of  delight, — 
so  long  as  we  are  healthy,  we  can  think  of  the 
years  that  have  gone  by  with  pleasure, — so  long 
as  there  are  no  broken  arcs  in  the  family  circle, 
we  can  recall  the  days  of  childhood  with  joyful 
emotion.  And  it  is  the  same  with  our  spiritual 
nature ;  so  long  as  we  have  the  inward  con- 
sciousness that  the  light  of  God's  countenance  is 
shining  upon  us,  we  are  glad  and  joyous, — so 
long  as  we  have  peace,  calmness,  rest  of  soul,  we 
can  think  of  other  days  without  a  tear.  But  let 
events  change,  and  how  changed  are  ive  !  When 
prosperity  departs,  what  pain  do  we  often  ex- 
perience, in  recalling  scenes  which  can  no  more 
return  1  When  disease  lays  us  prostrate,  how 
sadly  do  we  think  of  the  time  of  health  !  And 
when  inward  soul-trouble  comes  upon  us,  when 
we  are  sick  at  heart,  how  do  we  cry  with  the 


46  PAST  JOYS. 

patriarch, — "  Oh  that  it  were  with  me  as  in 
months  past !" 

Eeacler,  has  not  some  such  feeling  been  ex- 
perienced by  you  in  the  time  of  sickness  and 
trial  ?  Perhaps,  it  has  been  your  lot  to  be  sum- 
moned to  the  endurance  of  trial,  when  your  sky 
seemed  brightest, — when  hope  filled  your  breast, 
and  the  pathway  of  life  was  fair  and  pleasant. 
Suddenly  the  sky  became  overcast, — health  de- 
clined, the  rose  faded  from  the  cheek,  the  canker- 
worm  gnawed  at  the  vitals,  and  weakness  and 
weariness  took  the  place  of  strength  and  vigour  ? 
No  longer  able  to  mingle  in  the  crowd,  destitute 
even  of  strength  to  discharge  accustomed  duty, — 
oh,  have  not  past  joys, — the  recollection  of  days 
of  health,  of  innocent  enjoyment  with  friends 
you  dearly  loved,  of  scenes  in  which  without 
one  sigh  of  weariness  you  were  wont  to  be  an 
actor, — have  not  these  things  come  upon  you 
with  painful  intensity,  during  days  and  nights 
of  languor,  suffering,  and  wakefulness  ? 

We  have  all  felt  this, — all  of  us,  at  least, 
who  know  what  is  meant  by  faiHng  strength, 
by  increasing  debility,  by  helpless  prostration, 
by  long-continued  sickness.      At  such  times. 


PAST  JOYS.  47 

we  must  pray  earnestly  for  grace, — grace  to 
look  backward,  with  grateful  hearts,  on  all  the 
way  in  which  the  Lord  our  God  hath  led  us, 
— grace  to  become  resigned  to  the  loss  we  may 
have  sustained, — grace  to  realise,  that  good  is 
intended  and  not  evil,  in  our  being  robbed  of 
earthly  enjoyment,  that  we  may  more  largely  par- 
take of  heavenly  delights,  and  hold  closer  and 
nearer  communion,  with  the  Father  of  our  spirits 
and  the  Kedeemer  of  our  souls.  For,  short- 
sighted and  ignorant  as  we  are,  we  are  prone 
to  attach  a  value  to  things  which  would  really 
prove  injurious  to  us,  and  to  regard  as  worth- 
less that  which  will  become  most  conducive 
to  our  eternal  happiness.  How  frequently  does 
worldly  prosperity,  for  instance,  retard  the  spirit- 
ual advancement  and  well-being  of  the  soul ! 
The  Christian  becomes  more  and  more  entangled 
by  the  snares  and  deceitfulness  of  riches.  He 
relaxes  his  diligence, — he  sits  with  folded  hands, 
when  the  work  of  God  is  summoning  him  to 
exertion, — he  becomes  satisfied  with  present 
attainments,  instead  of  "  pressing  on  towards 
the  mark,  for  the  prize  of  the  high  calling  of 
God  in  Christ  Jesus,"  and,  unchastened  and 


48  PAST  JOYS. 

unchecked, — undisturbed  by  sorrow  or  suffering, 
he  imagines  that  "  all  is  well/'  But,  suddenly,  he 
is  startled  by  some  calamity  or  laid  prostrate  by 
disease.  The  sunshine  of  worldly  prosperity 
gives  place  to  the  dark,  thick  clOud  of  adversity, 
and  the  language  of  Ins  soul  is, — "  The  joy  of  my 
heart  is  ceased."  Could  he  trace,  however,  the 
merciful  design  of  his  heavenly  Father,  he  would 
know,  that  it  was  to  rouse  him  from  his  lethargy, 
— to  summon  him  to  holy,  active  exertion, — to 
draw  him  away  from  scenes  and  pursuits  in  which 
there  was  no  true  and  lasting  enjoyment,  that  he 
had  to  become  the  tenant  of  the  sick-room,  or  to 
be  stripped  of  what  he  deemed  the  joys  of  his 
heart.  There  would  he  be  taught,  that  the  plea- 
sures he  had  so  eagerly  sought  after,  were  peril- 
ling the  safety  of  Ins  soul, — that  the  voice  of 
God  was  unheard  and  unheeded,  when  the  heart 
was  only  filled  with  earthly  delight, — and  that 
it  was  to  make  him  partake  of  heavenly  and 
abiding  joy,  that  he  was  called  to  enter  the  fiery 
furnace,  and  pass  through  the  ordeal  of  sickness 
or  misfortune. 

And  so,  too,  has  it  often  been,  with  those 
whose  enjoyments  were  more  innocent,  and  less 
hurtful  to  the  soul, — whose  jay,  perhaps,  sprung 


PAST  JOYS.  49 

from  sweet  intercourse  with  loved  and  cherished 
friends,  around  whom  their  heart-strings  were, 
all  too  fondly,  entwined.  In  their  society  and 
fellowship  they  took  delight  from  day  to  day, 
and  along  life's  path  they  journeyed  side  by  side, 
unthinking  of  any  sad  hour  of  separation.  But, 
the  spoiler  came, — the  shadow  of  death  enwrapt 
them  in  its  folds,  and  they  had  to  bid  a  long 
farewell  to  those  who  had  been  their  earthly 
idols.  Standing  beside  the  lifeless  corpse,  or 
committing  to  their  last  resting-place  the  ashes 
of  the  loved  one,  they  have  cried  in  the  anguish 
of  their  spirit — "  the  joy  of  our  heart  is  ceased." 
Life  appeared  a  dreary,  solitary  waste, — and, 
like  Kachel  weeping  for  her  children,  they 
"  refused  to  be  comforted/'  But  why  the  heavy 
stroke?  why  the  sad  bereavement?  TV  as  it 
that  our  heavenly  Father  took  delight  in  the 
sorrows  of  His  children  ?  Oh  !  no,  it  was  not 
so.  It  was  to  draw  the  hearts  of  mourning  re- 
latives nearer  to  Himself, — it  was  to  raise  their 
affections  to  those  things  which  are  above, — it 
was  to  teach  them,  most  impressively,  that, 
having  now  one  tie  fewer  upon  earth,  they  had 
one  more  in  heaven. 


50  PAST  JOYS. 

"  Affliction,  when  it  spreads  around, 
May  seem  a  field  of  woe ; 
Yet  there,  at  last,  the  happy  fruits 
Of  righteousness  shall  grow." 

We  might  appeal  to  those  whose  afflictions 
have  been  sanctified,  and  they  would  tell  us, 
that  love, — only  love,  had  portioned  out  their 
trials,  and  that,  bitter  as  had  been  the  cup  given 
them  to  drink,  the  "present  joy"  of  a  Saviour's 
abiding  presence  was  far  more  precious,  than  the 
"  past  joys"  which  had  been  taken  from  them. 
They  realised  the  nearness  and  the  love  of  God, 
— the  grace  and  tender  sympathy  of  their 
Redeemer,  as  they  had  never  done  before.  They 
were  enabled  to  unbosom  to  Him  all  their  griefs, 
and  to  pour  out  their  hearts  before  Him.  They 
learned,  by  how  slight  a  tenure  we  hold  all 
earthly  enjoyments, — by  how  enduring  a  cove- 
nant we  are  made  inheritors  of  all  heavenly 
blessing.  And  thus,  by  the  sanctifying  power 
of  the  Spirit,  the  stroke  of  affliction,  which  had 
opened  the  floodgates  of  grief,  opened  also  a 
well-spring  of  joy,  with  which  "a  stranger 
intermeddleth  not,"  and  which  "  no  man  taketh 
from  them." 


PAST  JOYS.  51 

Had  their  day  continued  all  sunshine,  their 
earthly  joys  ever  increasing,  and  their  health, 
ease,  and  worldly  comfort  suffering  no  break, — 
they  would  soon  have  forgotten  God, — soon 
have  wandered  far  from  the  Saviour, — soon 
have  become  unmindful  of  their  true  character 
and  destiny. 

"  It  needs  our  hearts  be  wean  d  from  earth, 

It  needs  that  we  be  driven, 
By  loss  of  every  earthly  stay, 

To  seek  our  joys  in  heaven. 

11  Yes,  we  must  follow  in  the  path     • 

Our  Lord  and  Saviour  run, 
We  must  not  find  a  resting-place 
Where  He  we  love  had  none." 

Oh  !  then,  afflicted  suffering  one,  was  it  not 
in  mercy  that  the  dark  shadow  crossed  your 
path, — that  the  hand  of  love  arrested  you, — 
and  that  you  were  called  to  relinquish  the  fond 
idol  you  had  so  ardently  loved,  or  to  become 
yourself  the  tenant  of  the  sick-room  and  the 
sick-bed,  with  their  weariness  and  their  pain, 
— their  days  of  languor  and  their  nights  of  resfc- 
lessness  ? 


52  PAST  JOYS. 

Your  heavenly  Father  had  wise  and  gracious 
ends  to  serve,  and  He  accomplished  His  purpose 
in  you  and  by  you,  although  not  by  the  way  you 
expected  or  desired.  He  meant  to  purify,  and 
mould,  and  soften  your  heart;  by  His  Holy 
Spirit,  to  bring  your  will  into  entire  confor- 
mity with  His  own, — to  wean  your  affections 
from  earth,  and  to  raise  them  upward  to  heaven; 
— and  this  divine  purpose  He  will  continue  still 
to  carry  on,  until  your  heart  is  thoroughly  cleared 
from  dross,  the  body  of  sin  mortified,  and  you 
are  fitted  for  that  everlasting  home  which  the 
Saviour  is  preparing  for  you. 

Oh,  then,  think  not  so  much  of  "  past  joys," 
as  of  securing,  in  every  hour  of  sickness  and 
sorrow,  the  peace,  the  comfort,  the  joy  of  a 
"present  Saviour."  With  Him  by  your  side,  you 
will  be  able  to  "rejoice  in  tribulation;" — you 
will  bid  it  welcome ; — you  will  cherish  it  as  a 
heavenly  visitant — a  messenger  sent  from  above 
with  healing  to  your  soul.  You  will  find  "  the 
bow  in  the  cloud  " — the  Saviour's  light  arising 
out  of  darkness — His  form  upon  the  troubled 
waters;  and,  if  He  hush  them  not,  He  will 
say  to  your  soul,  "  Fear  not,  for  I  am  with 
thee." 


PAST  JOYS.  53 

"'  Look  not  mournfully  into  the  past : 
It  comes  not  back  again  ; 
Wisely  improve  the  present — it  is  thine ; 
Go  forth  to  meet  the  shadowy  future 
Without  fear,  and  with  a  manly  heart." 

The  remembrance  of  "past  joys"  will  not 
then  be  hurtful  or  painful  to  you.  Your 
"present  joy"  will  be  better  far;  the  joy  of 
near  and  sweet  communion  with  your  God  and 
Saviour, — the  joy  of  so  hearkening  to  His  voice 
of  love,  that  pain  and  sorrow  are  utterly  for- 
gotten,— the  joy  of  being  so  "  alone  with  God/' 
that  every  murmuring  is  hushed,  every  dis- 
quietude removed, — the  joy  of  having  such  a 
manifestation  of  the  Kedeemer's  glory  to  your 
soul,  as  will  shed  a  calm  and  blissful  radiance 
around  every  prospect,  and  prove  the  earnest  of 
that  better  heritage,  where  "  there  is  fulness  of 
joy  for  evermore." 

Oh,  then,  look  earnestly  to  Him, — try  to 
realise  His  presence, — hearken  for  His  voice  of 
love ;  and,  instead  of  murmuring  because  past 
joys  cannot  be  recalled,  pray  that st  present  joy" 
may  be  imparted, — that  the  Saviour  may  hold 
communion  with  you.  and  pour  into  your  heart 


54  PAST  JOYS. 

that  "joy  which  no  man  taketh  from  you,"— 
that  the  language  of  your  soul  may  be — 

"  Lord,  as  Thou  wilt !  nor  this,  nor  that  I  will  : 
Lord,  as  Thou  wilt,  so  only  let  it  be  ! 
Lord,  I  am  Thine  !  Thy  pleasure,  Lord,  fulfil ! 
I,  as  a  child,  will  lift  mine  eyes  to  Thee." 

Gracious  and  merciful  Father  !  who  dost  not 
willingly  afflict  the  children  of  men ;  but  dost 
rebuke  and  chasten  those  whom  Thou  lovest: 
look  down  upon  me,  Thine  unworthy  servant, 
and  have  mercy  upon  me  for  Christ's  sake  !  I 
acknowledge  the  justice  and  the  mercy  of  Thy 
dealings  with  me.  Oh,  keep  me  from  murmur- 
ing because  past  joys  are  no  longer  mine.  Give 
me  to  feel  that  Thou  knowest  the  discipline  I 
need,  and  that  earthly  joy  cannot  impart 
heavenly  peace.  Although  Thou  hast  visited 
me  with  sickness,  and  laid  Thine  hand  upon 
me,  oh  grant  that  I  may  still  have  inward  joy 
and  comfort.  May  I  have  grace  to  surrender 
all  things  into  Thy  hands,  referring  the  disposal 
of  them  to  Thee — and  that  heartily  and  fully. 
Even  in  the  darkest  night  of  sorrow  may  I  cast 
anchor  in  Thee,  and  repose  on  Thee  when  I  see 


PAST  JOTS.  55 

no  light,  remembering  that  this  is  not  my  home, 
nor  the  place  of  my  rest,  but  the  place  of  my 
trial  and  conflict ;  and  that  my  home  is  above. 
Good  Lord  and  Father,  of  Thine  infinite  mercy 
Thou  hast  called  me  to  eternal  glory ;  save  me, 
then,  I  pray  Thee,  from  ever  being  so  ungrateful 
as  to  repine  against  Thee,  and  so  to  drown 
precious  heavenly  blessings  in  any  little  trouble 
that  befalls  me ;  give  me  more  deep  thoughts  of 
the  joys  of  the  world  to  come ;  lift  my  eyes  to 
that  state  where  Thy  saints  now  rejoice  before 
Thee ;  direct  my  steps  to  it,  and  lead  me  towards 
it,  cheerful  and  unwearied,  by  an  assured  hope 
that  the  joyful  day  will  at  length  come,  when,  as 
Christ's  disciple,  I  too  shall  be  admitted  into  the 
fullest  light.  Oh,  give  me  grace  to  cast  myself 
wholly  on  Thy  mercy,  and  neither  to  despise 
Thy  chastenings,  nor  faint  under  them;  but, 
with  resignation  to  Thy  blessed  will,  and  ac- 
knowledgment of  Thy  paternal  love,  to  speak 
good  of  Thy  name,  now  and  ever,  through  Jesus 
Christ  our  Lord. — Amen. 


56  PAST  JOYS. 


JEHOYAH-JIEEH. 

When  earthly  joys  glide  fast  away, 
When  hopes  and  comforts  flee ; 

When  foes  beset,  and  friends  betray, 
I  turn,  my  God,  to  Thee ! 

Thy  nature  Lord,  no  change  can  know ; 

Thy  promise  still  is  sure  ; 
And  ills  can  ne'er  so  hopeless  grow 

But  Thou  canst  find  a  cure. 

Deliverance  comes  most  bright  and  blest 

At  danger's  darkest  hour ; 
And  man's  extremity  is  best 

To  prove  Almighty  power. 

High  as  Thou  art,  Thou  still  art  near 

When  suppliants  succour  crave ; 
And  as  Thine  ear  is  swift  to  hear, 


Thine  arm  is  strong  to  save. 


Lyte's  Poems. 


PAST  JOYS.  57 


''  Oh  that  1  were  as  in  months  past/" — Job  xxix.  2. 

Oh  for  the  warmth  of  other  days, 

The  fervour  and  the  fire 
That  breathed  through  every  song  of  praise. 

And  kindled  each  desire  1 
That  gave  the  depth  of  holy  love 

To  the  still  voice  of  prayer, 
When  first  it  wing'd  its  way  above, 

To  plead  a  Saviour  there ! 

Oh  for  that  love,  so  deep,  so  true, — 

That  first  young  love  of  heaven, 
That  fill'd  this  soul,  when  first  it  knew 

Its  sins  were  all  forgiven  ! 
When  first  it  felt  the  saving  power 

Of  Christ's  atoning  blood ; 
And  in  that  hope-reviving  hour, 

Gave  itself  up  to  God  I 

But  colder  now, — more  careless  grown, 
This  heart  seems  hard  or  dead ; 

The  love  once  felt  is  now  unknown. 
The  faith  once  fervent, — fled ! 


58  PAST  JOYS. 

While  even  He,  whose  dawning  ray 
Of  love  snch  comfort  brought, 

rMid  blessings  of  a  perfect  day, 
Is  now  almost  forgot. 

Time  was  when  prayer  was  a  delight, 

And  precious  was  the  word : 
To  muse  therein  both  day  and  night, 

And  commune  with  the  Lord  ! 
But  now,  a  privilege  no  more, 

'Tis  duty  only  moves  ; 
Because  I  fear  Him,  I  adore, — 

And  not  because  He  loves. 

Oh  for  the  warmth  of  other  days  !  — 

And  yet,  how  vain  must  be 
Such  wishes,  Lord,  unless  my  ways 

With  Thy  commands  agree  ! 
For  love  must  die,  and  joy  must  cease, 

When  man  forgets  his  God ; 
And  paths  of  pleasantness  and  peace 

The  careless  never  trod. 

Lord,  make  this  heart  more  purely  Thint 
And  such  fond  love  supply, 

TVIid  feeling's  premature  decline, 
That  faith  may  never  die  I 


PAST  JOYS.  59 

So  shall  each  careless,  cold  desire 

Once  more  devoutly  burn ; 
And  all  the  fervour  and  the  fire 

Of  Heaven's  first  love  return. 

Parish  Musings. 


"  And  they  went  and  told  Jesus." — Matt.  xiv.  12. 

Go,  happy  one,  and  tell  to  Jesus, 
When  thou  art  full  of  joy ; 

He  gives  thee  all,  and  to  His  praise 
Thy  life  on  earth  employ. 

Go,  anxious  one,  and  tell  to  Jesus 
Thy  conflicts  and  thy  fears  ; 

He  loves  to  bear  thee  on  thy  way, 
To  carry  all  thy  cares. 

Go,  tempted  one,  and  tell  to  Jesus 
How  hard  the  fight  of  sin  ; 

How  oft  the  heart  is  sore  dismay'd, 
When  strife  is  strong  within. 

Go,  sujf'rer,  tell  thy  heart  to  Jesus, 
He  marks  thy  life  of  pain ; 

And  longs  to  welcome  thee  above, 
And  place  thee  there  to  reign. 


60  PAST  JOYS. 

Go,  mourner,  tell  thy  griefs  to  Jesus, 

"Weep  only  at  His  feet ; 
Thy  tears  He  TL  keep,  and  give  thee  back 

His  sympathy  so  sweet. 

Go,  weeping  one,  and  tell  to  Jesus 

The  anguish  of  thy  heart ; 
In  all  life's  sorrows,  which  are  thine, 

He  ever  takes  a  part. 

How  sweet  to  feel,  while  still  below, 

Each  sorrow  we  may  tell 
To  One  who  trod  this  "  vale  of  tears/' 

And  knows  its  sadness  well. 

E.  F.  de  M. 


FOE  A  SUFFEEING  BELIEVEE. 

And  shall  a  sinful  worm  complain 

Of  weary  days,  and  nights  of  pain  ? 

Shall  I  arraign  the  will  of  God, 

Who  bought  me  with  His  precious  blood  ? 

Are  not  my  times  within  His  hand  ? 
Are  not  my  pains  at  His  command  ? 
Do  I  not  hear  Him  sweetly  say, 
"  Strength  shall  be  given  as  thy  day  ?" 


PAST  JOYS.  61 

Oh,  may  these  light  afflictions  prove 
Means  to  increase  my  faith  and  love  ! 
And  may  I  meekly  bear  the  cross, 
In  mercy  sent  to  purge  my  dross  I 

Am  I  not  His — His  ransom'd  one — 
A  burning  brand  from  Satan  won  ? 
Have  I  a  grief  He  does  not  share, 
A  pain  He  helps  me  not  to  bear  ? 

Oh  no  1  Emmanuel  guards  my  bed ; 
His  arms  of  love  support  my  head ; 
Like  John,  I  lean  upon  His  breast, 
And  find  in  Him  a  perfect  rest. 

Then,  welcome  trials,  welcome  pains, 
Since  Jesus  thus  my  head  sustains ; 
He  will  receive  my  parting  breath, 
And  guide  me  through  the  vale  of  death ! 


>utonfesum< 


Luke  si.  2. 
"  Thy  will  be  done." 

Such  is  part  of  the  prayer  which  our  Saviour 
taught  His  disciples.  It  is  familiar  to  us  all. 
We  have  lisped  it  at  a  mother's  knee,  we  have 
given  utterance  to  it  in  the  house  of  prayer,  and 
in  the  secrecy  of  our  closets  we  have  offered  it 
up  at  the  throne  of  the  heavenly  grace.  And 
yet,  how  seldom  have  we  fully  realised  its  im- 
port, and  given  our  willing,  heartfelt  response 
to  the  petition  I  The  truth  is,  we  can  only 
fathom  its  deep  meaning,  and  attain  the  power 
of  saying  "  Amen  "  from  the  heart,  by  degrees. 
And  the  place  where  our  heavenly  Father  often- 
est  imparts  the  power,  is  the  clmrriber  of  sick- 
ness. There  we  feel  the  intense  reality  of  the 
spiritual  struggle, — the  battlings  of  the  human 
will  against  the  Divine, — the  wrestlings  between 
doubt  and  trust,  between  earth  and  heaven,  be- 
tween things  seen  and  temporal,  and  things  un- 
seen and  eternal.     It  is  for  the  very  purpose  of 


66  SUBMISSION. 

teaching  us  submission,  that  trials,  and  sickness, 
and  sorrows  come  upon  us. 

In  health  and  prosperity  our  great  desire  is 
self-Fleming.    We  are  ever  prone  to  follow  the 
suggestions  of  our  own  hearts,  and  to  seek  for 
happiness   in   the   pursuit  of  things  seen  and 
temporal.     Our  own  will,  and  not  the  will  of 
God,  is  too  often  the  ruling  motive  of  our  ac- 
tions.   The  question  is  not,  "  Lord,  what  wilt 
Thou  have  me  to  do  ?  "-hut  "  how  shall  I  most 
easily— how  shall  I  most  speedily— secure  the 
attainment    of   my    own    selfish    wishes    and 
desires  ?"     We  may  he  unwilling  to  acknow- 
ledge even  to  ourselves,  that  we  are  moved  and 
impelled  hy  love  of  self  ;— we  may  succeed  in 
satisfying  conscience  that,  hecause  we  perform 
certain  religious  duties-are  careful  to  avoid 
certain  sins,  and  put  forth  our  energies  at  times 
in  furthering  some  Christian  enterprise,  we  may 
have  leave  to  follow  the  hent  of  our  inclinations 
in  the  main  ;-in  a  word,  that,  in  the  reluctant 
giving  up  of  a  part  of  this  world,  we  may,  m  the 
rest,  be  worldly  without  risk  or  blame.     And, 
unless  arrested  by  Divine  grace-revived  and 
quickened  anew  by  the  Spirit  of  God ;  self -the 
world— the  pursuits  and  pleasures  of  time,  will 


SUBMISSION.  67 

gain  such  entire  mastery,  that  faith  is  weak- 
ened, love  waxes  cold,  and  all  spiritual  energy- 
is  cramped  and  paralysed.  And  this,  because 
there  is  a  natural  agreement  between  our  hearts 
— (even  when  renewed  by  God's  grace) — and 
earthly  things ; — because  it  is  far  easier  to 
follow  our  own  wills  than  the  will  of  God  ; — be- 
cause the  spirit  of  submission  will  not  enter  into 
the  soul  which  is  engrossed  and  troubled, 
merely  about  this  busy  world  of  trifles. 
Therefore  God,  who  desires  the  true  happiness 
of  His  children, — who  will  not  suffer  them  to 
become  any  more  the  willing  captives  of  sin  and 
Satan, — and  whose  purpose  is  to  conform  them 
to  the  image  of  His  dear  Son, — lays  His  hand 
upon  them,  that  in  the  quiet  and  retirement 
of  the  sick-chamber,  they  may  be  brought  to 
solemn  thought, — that  they  may  be  refined  and, 
purified,  till  the  dross  of  selfishness,  impatience, 
and  worldliness  is  removed  from  their  hearts, 
and  they  are  brought  to  say,  as  they  never 
could  before,  "  Father,  Thy  will  be  done." 

Nor  is  this  ordeal  through  which  they  pass,  of 
short  duration.  Hard  and  difficult  is  the  lesson 
they  have  to  learn.  The  desire  for  self-pleas- 
ing,— the    longing    for   earth's   delights, — the 


68  SUBMISSION. 

yearnings  for  temporal  comfort  and  ease,— all 
must  be  rooted  out  of  the  heart,  to  give  place 
to  a  meek,  patient,  and  submissive  spirit.  The 
whole  consciousness  must  be  penetrated  with  a 
sense  of  sin;— of  the  evil  done,— the  good  left 
undone,— the  waywardness  and  folly,— the  im- 
patience and  fretfulness,  manifested  in  the  past. 
The  soul  must  be  driven  away  from  everything 
on  which  it  rested,  and  in  which  it  delighted, 
to  the  foot  of  the  cross—  there  to  give  up  itself 

its  sin— the  will— the  affections— the  whole 

heart— into  God's  hands— to  be  disposed  of  at 
His  pleasure,  without  one  resisting,  one  oppos- 
ing thought. 

Its  language  must  be,  "  0  Lord  God,  long- 
suffering,  and  plenteous  in  mercy  and  truth,  to 
Thee  I  come,  sorrowing  and  repenting.  Lord, 
I  lament  before  Thee,  that  I  have  so  resisted 
Thy  blessed  will,  that  I  have  so  long  followed 
my  own  sinful  and  worldly  inclinations.  Do 
Thou  keep  my  wayward  heart,  for  I  cannot 
keep  it  myself.  With  a  feeling  of  total  help- 
lessness and  weakness,  I  surrender  myself  into 
Thy  hands.  Oh,  subdue  every  selfish  and  re- 
bellious thought  within  me.  Give  me  a  tender 
conscience,  a  fear  of  again  going  astray,  an 


SUBMISSION.  69 

ardent  desire  of  doing  and  enduring  Thy  holy 
will,  and  enable  me  so  to  live  to  Thy  glory 
here,  that  hereafter  I  may  inherit  Thy  promises 
of  eternal  life,  which  Thou  hast  given  me  in 
Jesus  Christ." 

It  is  thus  that  the  Spirit  of  God,  through  the 
severe  discipline  of  sickness,  suffering,  disap- 
pointments, crosses,  and  trials,  leads  the  soul  to 
a  realising  sense  of  its  waywardness  and  folly, 
— of  its  past  sinful  resisting  of  the  will  and  pur- 
pose of  God, — and  of  the  necessity  for  an  entire 
and  conrplete  surrender  of  the  whole  man,  to 
His  guidance, — His  faithfulness  and  His  care. 
It  is  thus  that  the  believer  is  brought  to  learn, 
that  it  is  in  following  the  directing  hand  of 
God, — in  resigning  everything  to  His  wise  dis- 
posal,— in  being  ready  to  do  or  suffer  anything 
He  requires,  that  true  happiness  is  to  be  en- 
joyed. And,  oh,  surely  it  may  inspire  gratitude 
and  love,  to  know  and  be  assured,  that  such  will 
be  the  end  accomplished,  in  every  believer's 
experience.  None  will  be  exempt  from  the  dis- 
cipline,— none  wiU  fail  to  reap  the  benefit.  To 
some,  indeed,  the  ordeal  may  be  less  painful 
than  to  others,  but  all  will  be  brought,  in  God's 
good  time  and  way,  to  give  their  willing  heart- 


70  SUBMISSION. 

felt    response    to  the  petition,  "  Thy  will  be 
done." 

"  Leave  to  His  sovereign  sway 
To  choose  and  to  command  ; 
So  shalt  thou  wondering  own,  His  way 
How  wise,  how  strong  His  hand  ! 

"  Far,  far  above  thy  thought 
His  counsel  shall  appear, 
When  fully  He  the  work  hath  wrought 
That  caused  thy  needless  fear." 

Bereaved  mourner  !  do  you  feel  it  a  difficult 
thing,  in  the  dark  hour  of  sorrow,  to  say  "  Thy 
will  be  done "  from  the  heart,  and  to  bow  in 
meek  submission  to  the  appointment  of  your 
heavenly  Father  ?  Oh  !  deem  it  not  strange. 
It  is  hard  and  difficult  to  bid  a  last  farewell 
to  the  loved — the  cherished  ; — hard  to  wander 
through  scenes  and  places,  where  you  were  wont 
to  hear  the  voice  of  affection  and  grasp  the  hand 
of  true  and  tried  friendship; — hard  to  realise 
that  never  again  on  earth  will  you  listen  to 
accents  which  once  fell  so  sweetly  on  the  ear, 
or  gaze  upon  that  countenance  which  ever 
beamed  with  fond  regard  towards  you.      An 


SUBMISSION.  71 

eminent  servant  of  God,  now  at  rest  in  heaven, 
thus  describes  the  anguish  he  felt  in  the  loss  of 
a  beloved  son: — "  I  often  rind  myself,  when 
alone,  literally  crying  out  for  him,  and  moved 
to  stretch  out  my  arms  as  if  I  could  embrace 
him/'  And  such,  afflicted  one,  may  be  the 
anguish  of  your  heart. 

Still,  be  assured,  the  trying  dispensation  was 
needful.  He,  who  loves  you  more  tenderly 
than  any  earthly  friend,  sent  it  to  draw  your 
heart  upwards  to  Himself, — sent  it  to  lead  you 
with  child-like  dependence  to  trust  your  all  to 
Him, — for  joy  or  sorrow, — for  health  or  sick- 
ness,— for  time  or  eternity.  He  desires  by  this 
affliction,  to  conform  your  will  more  and  more 
to  His, — to  increase  your  love  of  holiness,  and 
render  you,  in  a  higher  degree,  its  possessor, — 
to  strengthen  your  faith,  inflame  your  love,  ani- 
mate your  hope,  and,  in  the  end,  confirm  your 
joy.  Think  not  that,  because  the  gloom  of  death 
surrounds  you, — because  your  heart  is  now 
lacerated  and  bleeding,- — the  love,  the  tendernesf 
of  your  heavenly  Father  is  withdrawn.  "  As 
many  as  I  love,  I  rebuke  and  chasten,"  is  the 
Divine  assurance ; — "  They  that  sow  in  tears 
shall  reap  in  joy."     Indulge  no  dark,  despond- 


72  SUBMISSION. 

ing  thoughts.  Imagine  not,  that  because  the 
clouds  have  gathered  round  you,  the  sky  will 
never  again  be  clear,  or  that  the  sun  will  never 
again  shine  upon  your  pathway; — "  All  the  paths 
of  the  Lord  are  mercy  and  truth  to  them  that 
truly  love  Him."  In  this  your  night  of  grief, 
He  says  to  you,  as  to  all  His  children — "  Who  is 
among  you  that  feareth  the  Lord  and  obeyeth 
the  voice  of  his  servant,  though  he  walk  in 
darkness,  and  have  no  light  ?  let  him  trust  in 
the  name  of  the  Lord,  and  stay  himself  upon  his 
God."  He  will  enable  you  to  say  as  David  does, 
immediately  after  a  season  of  despondency, — 
"  The  Lord  will  command  his  loving-kindness  in 
the  day-time,  and  in  the  night  his  song  shall  be 
with  me,  and  my  prayer  unto  the  God  of  my  life. 
I  will  say  unto  God  my  rock,  why  hast  thou  for- 
gotten me  ?  why  go  I  mourning  all  the  day  ? 
Why  art  thou  cast  down,  0  my  soul,  and  why 
art  thou  disquieted  within  me  ?  Hope  thou  in 
God ;  for  I  shall  yet  praise  him,  who  is  the 
health  of  my  countenance,  and  my  God." 

Oh,  do  not  resist  or  struggle  against  your 
heavenly  Father,  but  strive  to  yield  yourself 
meekly  and  humbly  to  His  will, — hear  the  rod 
and  Him  who  appointed  it, — pray  that  He  would 


SUBMISSION.  73 

hallow  your  trial — whatever  it  may  be  ; — that 
He  would  give  you  grace,  patiently  and  con- 
tentedly to  bear  what  He  has  laid  upon  you, — 
so  that,  day  by  day,  you  may  receive  the  im- 
press of  the  likeness  of  the  ever-blessed  Saviour, 
and  become  meet  for  the  heavenly  inheritance. 

Keflect,  too,  that  submission  is  pleasing  in 
your  heavenly  Father  s  sight.  The  sooner  you 
acquire  the  spirit  of  a  child,  the  sooner  will  the 
cross,  the  trial,  the  suffering,  be  both  sanctified 
and  removed.  Not  that  you  are  to  try  to  bear 
with  patience,  in  order  to  be  freed  from  chastise- 
ment, but  because  you  will  be  doing  "  that 
which  is  pleasing  to  Him  ; "  and  when  you  do, 
He  will  enable  you  to  "  rejoice  with  exceeding 
joy."  He  knows  the  weight  and  duration  of  your 
sorrows  and  trials.  He  sees  the  end  from  the 
beginning,  and  the  happy  issue  out  of  all  your 
afflictions  which  He  has  in  store  for  you.  Trust 
Him  implicitly; — submit  to  Him  cheerfully,  and 
you  will  find  that  all  shall  yet  be  well, — that 
more  grace  will  be  given  you, — that  the  heavier 
the  trial  the  larger  will  be  the  measure  of 
strength.  No  sorrow  has  been  mingled  in  your 
cup — no  thorn  has  been  scattered  on  your  path 
— no  grief  has  oppressed  your  spirit,  but  what 


74  SUBMISSION. 

"  is  common  to  the  whole  family  of  God."  The 
Shepherd  is  leading  you  by  a  circuitous  path,  but 
in  the  right  way,  to  His  own  blessed  fold.  Leave 
all  to  Him — to  His  faithfulness,  His  love,  His 
power,  His  watchful,  sleepless  care.  Let  your 
song  be — 

"  He  led  me  through  the  wilderness, 

A  long  and  lonely  way  ; 
He  soothed  me  with  His  tenderness, 

And  fed  me  day  by  day. 
Oh,  better  far  the  wilderness 

And  desert  way  to  me, 
If,  wandering  in  its  loneliness, 

I  should  be  nearer  Thee  V 

As  you  advance,  still  trying  more  and  more 
to  submit  to  your  Father's  will, — in  every  fresh 
trouble  imploring  fresh  grace, — in  every  onset  of 
the  evil  heart  to  resist  God's  pleasure,  crying  to 
Him  for  help,  your  prayer  will  be  answered. 
"Mercies  you  do  not  dream  of  now  will  be  strewn 
around  your  footsteps.  Powers  which  till  now 
have  lain  as  sleeping  shadows  within  you,  will 
awake  to  life, — powers  of  faith,  of  hope,  of  love, 
and  of  that  perfect  patience  and   submission 


SUBMISSION.  75 

which  will  enable  you  to  lift  your  streaming 
eyes  to  heaven,  and  say,  "  Lord  I  am  Thine  ;  do 
with  me  what  Thou  wilt, — send  me  what  Thou 
pleasest ;  only  do  Thou  abide  with  me."  Then 
let  the  shades  of  evening  fall, — let  your  path  be 
dark  and  desolate, — let  your  burden  be  heavy, 
your  cross  painful, — in  the  surrounding  stillness 
you  will  hear  voices  cheering  you  onward,  voices 
from  the  everlasting  hills,  and  the  sound  as  of 
the  waving  of  angels'  wings  around  you. 

"  One,  too,  mightier  than  the  angels,  will 
make  His  presence  felt ;  and  as  you  place  your 
trembling  hand  in  His,  and  cry,  '  Lord,  guide 
me,  for  I  cannot  see/  there  will  descend  a 
stream  of  light  upon  your  darkening  path,  and 
peace  so  perfect,  that,  with  songs  of  praise  and 
thanksgiving,  you  will  pursue  your  way,  willing 
to  wait,  willing  to  endure,  willing  to  do  all 
tilings  and  to  suffer  all  things,  for  His  dear 
sake,  who  is  leading  you  through  the  valley  of 
the  shadow  of  death,  to  the  fountains  of  living 
waters,  to  the  land  of  everlasting  joy." 

0  Thou  who  art  the  God  of  patience  and  con- 
solation, strengthen  me  in  the  inner  man,  that 


76  SUBMISSION. 

I  may  bear  the  yoke  and  burden  of  the  Lord 
without  murmuring.  May  I  heartily  love  Thee, 
entirely  confide  in  Thee,  and  absolutely  resign 
both  soul  and  body  to  Thy  wise  disposal.  Lord, 
I  am  sensible  that  I  am  far  from  exercising  that 
unreserved  submission  to  Thy  will  which  I  ought 
to  exercise.  Help  me,  I  beseech  Thee,  so  to 
trust  in  Thy  infinite  goodness  and  unerring  wis- 
dom, that  I  may  be  able  to  say,  from  my  very 
heart,  "  Thy  will  be  done."  Oh,  teach  me  to  be 
grateful  for  the  manifold  comforts  allotted  me  ; 
and  support  me  graciously,  that  my  soul  be  not 
cast  down  and  disquieted  within  me.  Assist 
me  to  cherish  penitent,  believing,  and  serious 
thoughts  and  affections,  and  such  meekness  and 
patience  as  my  Divine  Master  manifested  while 
He  was  a  sufferer  on  earth.  Give  me  a  deep 
sense  of  my  sinfulness,  that  I  may  ever  be  hum- 
bled before  Thee,  and  may  feel  Thy  great  mercy 
and  forbearance  towards  me. 

Grant  that  all  Thy  dispensations  may  be 
sanctified  by  Thy  Holy  Spirit,  and  be  instru- 
mental in  preparing  me  for  that  happy  state 
where  peace,  and  purity,  and  love  are  perfected, 
— where  there  is  no  more  sin,  no  strife,  no  sor- 
row,— where  the  former  things  are  passed  away, 


SUBMISSION.  77 

and  Thou  makest  all  things  new.  Hear,  gra- 
cious Lord,  accept,  and  answer,  and  bless  Thy 
servant,  for  Jesus  Christ's  sake. — Amen 


BEST. 


It  was  Thy  will,  my  Father. 

That  laid  Thy  servant  low  ; 
It  was  Thy  hand,  my  Father, 

That  dealt  the  chastening  blow  ; 
It  was  Thy  mercy  bade  me  rest 

My  weary  soul  awhile  ; 
And  every  blessing  I  receive, 

Keflects  Thy  gracious  smile. 

It  is  Thy  care,  my  Father, 

That  cherishes  me  now ; 
It  is  Thy  peace,  my  Father, 

That  rests  upon  my  brow ; 
It  is  Thy  truth,  Thy  truth  alone, 

That  gives  my  spirit  rest, 
And  soothes  me  like  a  happy  child 

Upon  its  mother's  breast. 


78  SUBMISSION. 

I  have  known  youth,  my  Father, 

Bright  as  a  summer's  day, 
And  earthly  love,  my  Father  ; 

But  that  too  pass'd  away. 
Now  life's  small  taper  faintly  burns — 

A  little  flickering  flame, 
But  Thine  eternal  love  remains 

Unchangeably  the  same. 

The  Dove  on  the  Cross, 


SUBMISSION. 

Do  with  me  what  Thou  wilt, 

Submissively  and  still 
I  will  lie  passive  in  Thy  hands  ; 
Do  Thou  Thy  holy  will. 
'Tis  Thine  to  choose  :  my  portion  let  it  be 
To  acquiesce  with  deep  humility. 

Imbue  my  soul  with  light ; 

My  spirit  unto  Thine 
Unite,  and  let  me  thus  receive 
Thy  Spirit  into  mine  ; 
Absorb'd  in  close  communion,  let  me  feel 
The  peace  of  God  into  my  bosom  steal. 


SUBMISSION.  79 

Thou  art  the  Sanctuary 

Of  the  regenerate ; 
The  Hope,  the  Comforter,  the  Strength, 
Of  the  disconsolate. 
Enshrined  within  Thy  presence,  let  me  see 
Thee  only,  and  forget  my  misery. 

The  Dove  on  the  Cross. 


u  Hear  Thou  in  heaven  Thy  dwelling-place  :  and  when  Thou 
hearest,  forgive." — 1  Kings  viii.  30. 

And  wilt  Thou  hear  my  soul's  complaint, 

And  wilt  Thou  soothe  its  fears, 
Support  it,  Lord,  when  weak  and  faint, 

And  dry  these  falling  tears  ? 
Wilt  Thou  forget  to  sin  how  prone 

Its  wandering  wishes  be, 
And  this  remember,  Lord,  alone — 

That  it  was  bought  by  Thee  ? 

And  wilt  Thou  bear  with  every  doubt, 

And  pardon  every  sin, 
Subdue  each  righting  from  without, 

Forgive  each  fear  within  ? 


80  SUBMISSION. 

I  know  Thou  wilt ;  for  thus  Thy  grace, 

Though  oft  provoked  it  be, 
Keflected  from  my  Saviour's  face, 

Shines  brightest  upon  me. 

J.  S.  B.  Mostsell. 


VL 

u  Cljou  art  mp  <8tia:> 


Psalm  bdii.  8. 
"  My  soul  followeth  hard  after  Thee." 

And  it  is  the  desire  of  our  heavenly  Father  that 
it  should.  To  this  He  brings  all  His  dear  chil- 
dren by  one  way  or  other,  that  they  "follow  hard 
after  Him.''  Sometimes  He  visits  them  with 
sore  chastisement,  and  then,  with  tear-dimmed 
eyes  and  bleeding  hearts,  they  cry  to  Him  for 
mercy,  and  He  wipes  their  tears  away,  and 
gently  binds  up  their  wounds,  so  that  they  love 
Him  more  than  ever,  and  "  follow  after  Him/' 
Sometimes  He  permits  a  dark  cloud  to  over- 
shadow them, — they  become  timid  and  fearful, 
— they  cannot  realise  His  presence ;  and  faith, 
hope,  and  love  begin  to  languish.  Then  do 
they  lift  up  their  hearts,  exclaiming,  "  Lord, 
send  help.  Oh,  give  light,  comfort,  security ! " 
and  soon  a  friendly  hand  is  outstretched,  and  a 
loving  voice  whispers,  "  Fear  not !  I  am  with 
thee  still ;  *  and  with  a  firm,  unfaltering  step 
they  "  follow  after  Him."  Sometimes  they  be- 
come surrounded  with  difficulties  and  dangers. 


84         "  THOU  ART  MY  GOD? 

— every  step  of  their  pathway  is  trodden  with 
pain;  they  look  around,  but  can  discover  noway 
of  escape,  till,  in  answer  to  the  urgent  prayer, 
"  Lord,  help  me/'  they  are  conducted  to  a  quiet 
resting-spot,  and  then,  permitted  by  their 
heavenly  Guide  to  enter  an  easier  path,  "  they 
follow  hard  after  Him."  Or,  it  may  be  that 
weary  months  are  appointed  them, — months  of 
sickness  and  pain,  when  prayer  seems  unheard, 
longing  desire  unheeded,  and  the  most  urgent 
entreaties  appear  utterly  unavailing.  The  dis- 
ease may  even  take  such  deep  root  that  the 
appalling  thought  comes  home,  "It  is  life- 
long." Death  itself  would  almost  be  regarded 
as  a  relief,  but  it  comes  not.  No;  the  disci- 
pline is  needed,  severe  though  it  be ; — the  child 
will  not  be  forsaken,  for  an  Eye  of  love  rests 
upon  it; — the  heart  will  not  utterly  fail,  for  One 
will  yet  strengthen  it  on  the  bed  of  languishing; 
— the  soul  will  not  perish,  for  the  Kefiner  is  even 
now  purifying  it  from  its  dross.  Let  "  patience 
have  her  perfect  work,"  and  then  mark  the 
change.  Where  all  was  fretfulness,  impatience, 
despondency,  there  is  now  submission,  calmness, 
hope.  And  why  ?  Because  the  Comforter  has 
oome.     He  has  revealed  the  truth,  that  pardon 


"  THOU  ART  MY  GOD."  86 

is  more  precious  than  health, — God's  love  more 
precious  than  any  earthly  good, — salvation  more 
precious  than  years  of  unalloyed  worldly  happi- 
ness and  unbroken  health.  Who  shall  wonder, 
that  the  soul  thus  comforted  should  desire  "  to 
abide  under  the  shadow  of  the  Almighty/' — to 
have  Him  ever  near, — to  bask  in  the  sunshine 
of  His  favour, — to  hold  fast  by  the  everlasting 
Arm;  and  knowing,  from  bitter  experience,  how 
impossible  it  is  to  tread  life's  stormy  path  with- 
out such  a  companion, — how  soon  the  heart 
would  fail,  and  doubt  arise,  and  temptation 
beset,  and  despondency  return, — that  this  should 
be  its  language,  "  0  Lord,  my  soul  followeth 
hard  after  Thee!" 

Header,  what  is  your  state?  Are  you,  under 
the  chastening  hand  of  God,  pleading  hard  that 
He  would  send  relief  ?  Do  you  know  what  it  is 
to  groan  underneath  a  burden  which  seems  too 
heavy  for  you  to  bear  ?  Oh,  be  comforted  ! 
Turn  the  eye  of  faith  heavenward,  and,  if  the 
burden  be  not  removed,  you  will  be  abundantly 
strengthened  to  carry  it.  Still  pray  on ;  the 
Lord's  time  is  coming.  Believe  it,  Christian, 
your  trial  has  been  sent  in  tenderest  love.  God 
has  appointed  it  not  only  to  bring  you  to  believe 


86  "  THOU  ART  MY  GOD." 

in  His  love,  but  also  to  a  growing  enjoyment  of 
it,  that  you  may  long  ardently  for  its  possession 
and  "  follow  hard  after  Him."  It  is  when  we 
are  robbed  of  some  earthly  comfort, — when  we 
are  stripped  of  some  valued  possession, — when 
we  are  summoned  to  the  painful  endurance  of 
some  heavy  trial,  that  we  come  to  realise  how 
powerless  we  are  to  retain  anything  when  it 
pleases  God  to  command  its  removal.  Then  is 
it,  too,  that  under  the  teaching  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  we  learn,  how  good  and  gracious  have 
been  the  dealings  of  our  heavenly  Father,  in 
permitting  us  so  long  to  enjoy  blessings  for 
which  we  were  not  truly  thankful.  "We  are  led 
to  realise,  that  He  has  taken  them  from  us,  only 
in  order  to  prove  that  He  loves  us  still, — in 
order  to  confer  upon  us  other  and  far  more  pre- 
cious blessings.  What,  although  days  of  sick- 
ness are  appointed,  if  we  are  enabled  at  such 
times  to  draw  nearer  to  our  heavenly  Father, 
and  are  permitted  to  repose  on  His  bosom  of 
Infinite  Love  !  What,  although  the  storms  of 
adversity  beat  upon  us,  if  we  are  driven  to  the 
shelter  of  the  Kock  of  Ages  1  What,  although 
bereavement  and  sorrow  have  weighed  down  our 
hearts,  if  we  are  led  thereby  to  pour  out  all  our 


«'  THOU  ART  MY  GOD."  87 

griefs  and  cares,  to  Him  who  can  heal  and  com- 
fort the  wounded  spirit  I  Drawn  thus  to  our 
God  and  Saviour,  we  will  find  the  suffering- 
time  a  blessed  time, — we  will  "  rejoice  in  tribu- 
lation," because  we  are  made  conscious  of  a 
nearness  to  the  heart  of  our  heavenly  Father, 
unknown  to  us,  while  yet  unvisited  by  trial  and 
distant  from  the  cross. 

The  Saviour  becomes  more  precious  to  the 
soul,  for  we  have  felt  His  strengthening  Arm  sus- 
taining us, — we  have  heard  His  tender  accents 
soothing  us,  and  we  have  communed  with  Him 
in  spirit,  and  been  refreshed  and  comforted. 
Treading  the  path  of  suffering,  we  have  had 
the  presence  and  sympathy  of  One  who  Himself 
deeply  sorrowed, — One  who  is  therefore  well-fitted 
to  impart  consolation, — who  knows  every  fear 
and  anxiety — every  trouble  and  calamity  which 
can  fall  to  the  lot  of  His  disciples.  Oh,  when 
such  has  been  the  experience  of  the  tried  and 
suffering  believer, — when,  despite  days,  and 
nights,  and  months,  and  years  of  pain  and  dis- 
tress and  sorrow,  he  has  had  an  ever-growing 
enjoyment  of  Divine  love  and  faithfulness,  maj 
he  not  regard  his  suffering-time  as  a  precious 
one,  and,  yearning  for  more  and  more  intimate 


88  "THOU  ART  MY  GOD." 

communion  with  his  God  and  Saviour,  still  cry 
from  the  depths  of  a  grateful  heart,  "  my  soul 
f olloweth  hard  after  Thee  ?  " 

"Whate'er  may  change,  in  Him  no  change  is 

seen; 
A  glorious  Sun,  that  wanes  not  nor  declines: 
Above  the  clouds  and  storms  He  walks  serene, 
And  sweetly  on  His  people's  darkness  shines : 
All  may  depart ;  I  fret  not,  nor  repine, 
While  I  my  Saviour's  am,  while  He  is  mine. 

"He  stays  me  falling,  lifts  me  up  when  down, 
Keclaims  me  wandering,  guards  from  every 

foe; 
Plants  on  my  worthless  brow  the  victor's  crown ; 
Which,  in  return,  before  His  feet  I  throw, 
Grieved  that  I  cannot  better  grace  His  shrine, 
Who  deigns  to  own  me  His,  as  He  is  mine." 

But  even  when  such  enjoyment  of  Divine  love 
has  not  as  yet  been  realised, — when  trouble  and 
distress  lie  heavily  on  the  Christian,  and  he 
seems  ready  to  sink  under  the  oppressive  load, 
his  only  safety, — his  only  hope  of  realising,  that 
God  is  still  as  ever  to  him  a  God  of  love,  is  in 
"following  hard  after  Him," — making  known  to 


"  THOU  ART  MY  GOD."  89 

Him  the  grief  which  oppresses,  the  fear  which 
perplexes,  the  sins  which  weigh  heavily  upon 
the  soul.  Where  the  contrite  heart  is  found, 
God's  eye  expresses  only  love  and  pity,  and  His 
hand  reaches  out  forgiveness, — His  Spirit  fills 
the  heart  with  peace. 

He  does  send  affliction  after  affliction  until 
His  children  are  drawn  in  penitence  and 
humility  to  His  footstool, — hut,  when  the  eye  of 
faith  is  raised  to  the  cross  of  Calvary, — when  the 
Saviour's  "blood  is  anew  sprinkled  upon  the  soul, 
there  is  rest,  peace,  comfort,  hope,  and  joy  in 
the  Holy  Ghost.  Hear  the  words  of  an  inspired 
writer, — "I  will  look  unto  the  Lord;  I  will  wait 
for  the  God  of  my  salvation ;  my  God  will  hear 
me."  And  again, — "  I  waited  patiently  for  the 
Lord ;  and  he  inclined  unto  me,  and  heard  my 
cry.  He  brought  me  up  also  out  of  an  horrible 
pit,  out  of  the  miry  clay,  and  set  my  feet  upon 
a  rock,  and  established  my  goings.  And  he 
hath  put  a  new  song  in  my  mouth,  even  praise 
unto  our  God :  many  shall  see  it,  and  fear,  and 
shall  trust  in  the  Lord/' 

Yes,  this  is  the  true, — the  only  way  in  which 
we  can  hope  to  find  relief  and  comfort, — help 
and  deliverance,  in  every  hour  of  trial  and 


90        "  THOU  ART  MY  GOD." 

calamity.     In   Jesus   we  will   have   "peace," 
though  in  the  world  we  have  "tribulation." 

Tried  Christian!  be  assured,  it  is  your 
wisdom,  if  you  are  suffering  from  anxiety,  diffi- 
culty, or  trial,  to  go  immediately  on  your  bended 
knees  to  God,  and  acknowledge  that  all  the 
trouble  that  makes  you  anxious  and  distresses 
you,  comes  from  Him,  and  brings  you  to  Him ; 
— and  that  you  submit  to  Him, — that  you 
accept  the  chastisement  which,  as  a  loving 
Father,  He  has  sent,  and  earnestly  pray  for 
grace  to  profit  by  the  visitation.  Let  this  be  the 
language  of  your  soul — 

"  The  cross  my  Master  bore  for  me,  for  Him 

I  fain  would  bear, 
But  mortal  strength  to  weakness  turns,  and 

courage  to  despair ! 
Then  mercy  to  my  failings,  Lord,  my  sinking 

faith  renew, 
And  when  Thy  sorrows  visit  me,  oh,  send  Thy 

patience  too  1 " 

Cling  ever  to  the  assurance  that  He  loves 
thee, — that  thou  art  one  for  whom  the  Saviour 
offered  up  His  last  prayer,  and  sealed  it  with 


"  THOU  ART  MY  GOD."  91 

His  precious  blood !  Oh,  if  God  has  so  loved  thee 
as  to  give  His  own  Son  for  thee,  how  shall  He  not 
with  Him  also  freely  give  thee  all  things !  Banish, 
then,  from  thy  mind  all  hard  and  suspicious 
thoughts,  and  beware  lest,  through  thine  unbelief, 
affliction,  which  should  make  thee  "  follow  hard 
after  God,"  lead  thee  farther  and  farther  away 
from  Him.  Whatever  be  thy  cross, — thy  trou- 
ble,— thy  sorrow,  oh,  bring  it  to  the  mercy-seat, 
and  thy  Saviour  will  make  intercession  for  thee. 
Place  all  your  confidence  in  Him,  who  is  the 
Redeemer,  the  Elder  Brother,  the  High  Priest 
and  Mediator, — and  who  is,  even  now,  plead- 
ing for  thee  within  the  vail. 

Who  so  well  fitted  as  He  to  sympathise  with, 
and  to  strengthen  you?  He  has  sorrowed 
Himself, — groaned  beneath  the  pressure  of  an 
anguish  in  which  there  was  none  to  share,  and 
drained  the  very  dregs  of  the  cup  of  sorrow. 
Make  known  to  Him  your  desire.  You  are  un- 
worthy to  ask  anything  in  your  own  name  ;  ask 
humbly,  yet  confidently,  in  His.  The  Father 
may  reject  you, — His  own  Son  He  will  not. 
Your  sins  may  cry  aloud  for  punishment, — the 
blood  of  the  slain  Lamb  will  plead  louder  for 
mercy.     You  have  no  merit  to  entitle  you   to 


92  "  THOU  ART  MY  GOD." 

ask  anything,  but  the  Victim  of  the  great 
atoning  sacrifice  is  still  before  the  throne.  You 
may  dread  to  enter  the  holy  of  holies, — the 
great  High  Priest,  still  and  for  ever,  presents  the 
merits  of  His  all-perfect  sacrifice. 

"  Burden'd  with  guilt,  wouldst  thou  be  blest  ? 
Trust  not  the  world,  it  gives  no  rest ; 
Christ  brings  relief  to  hearts  opprest ; 
0  weary  sinner,  come  I 

"  Come,  leave  thy  burden  at  the  cross ; 
Count  all  thy  gains  but  worthless  dross; 
His  grace  o'erpays  all  earthly  loss ; 
0  needy  sinner,  come  1 

"  Come  hither  !  bring  thy  boding  fears, 
Thy  aching  heart,  thy  bursting  tears ; 
'Tis  Mercy's  voice  salutes  thine  ears  ; 

0  trembling  sinner,  come  !  " 

0  Lord,  my  heavenly  Father,  I  bow  down 
before  Thee  to  bless  Thee  for  all  Thy  mercies, 
and  especially  for  not  having  dealt  with  me 
according  to  my  many  sins.  Pardon,  I  beseech 
Thee,  for  Thy  Son  Jesus  Christ's  sake,  all  the 
offences  of  my  past  life,  and  enable  me  to  be- 
lieve in  Him  to  the  salvation  of  my  soul.     In- 


"  THOU  ART  MY  GOD."  93 

crease  my  longing  after  conformity  to  my  Divine 
Redeemer,  and  may  the  remembrance  of  His 
marvellous  love,  and  grace,  and  mercy  incline 
my  heart  to  "  follow  hard  after  Him."  Blessed 
Jesus !  Thy  followers  and  people  have  the 
assurance  of  Thine  own  gracious  declaration, 
that  whatsoever  they  shall  ask  in  Thy  name, 
they  will  receive  it.  0  Saviour  of  the  world !  I 
humbly  ask  of  Thee  more  love,  more  grace, 
more  faith  and  trust  in  Thee.  Help  me  to 
cling  to  Thee.  In  the  darkest  hour  may  I 
realise  Thy  presence ;  in  the  time  of  greatest 
danger  may  I  hear  Thy  voice;  and  when  my 
faith  begins  to  fail,  oh  let  Thy  strengthening 
arm  uphold  me.  Eemember,  0  Lord,  the  word 
unto  Thy  servant  in  which  Thou  hast  caused 
me  to  hope,  and  answer  me  according  to  the 
multitude  of  Thy  mercies. — Amen. 


•'  My  soul  followeth  hard  after  Thee." — Psalm  lxiii.  8. 

Give  me,  0  Lord,  whate'er  my  lot  may  be, 
A  heart  to  look  to,  and  to  lean  on  Thee ; 
Teach  me  the  thing  that  pleaseth  Thee  to  do, 
And  make  my  life  to  my  profession  true. 


94  "  THOU  ART  MY  GOD." 

Let  me,  my  Saviour,  on  Thy  breast  recline, 
Thy  words  my  comfort,  my  devotion  Thine  -, 
My  life's  best  joy  Thy  promises  to  prove, 
Trust  in  Thy  truth,  and  triumph  in  Thy  love. 

J.  S.  B.  M. 


"  Walk  in  love."— Epe.  v.  2. 

Lord,  give  me  grace  that  I  may  be 
Thine,  with  such  soul-sincerity, 
That  wheresoe'er  my  steps  may  move, 
My  first,  last  thought  may  be  Thy  love. 

Lord,  let  my  morn  and  evening  prayer 
Be  in  Thy  strength,  and  for  Thy  care ; 
That  neither  day  nor  night  be  past, 
So  as  to  grieve  me  at  the  last. 

But  while  I  watch  and  pray,  lest  sin 
Surprise  my  soul  and  enter  in, 
To  rob  me  of  my  present  joy, 
And  all  my  hopes  of  heaven  destroy — 

Let  my  first  fear  be,  lest  I  grieve 
The  grace  that  taught  me  to  believe ; 
Let  my  last  care  be,  not  to  prove 
Ungrateful  for  Thy  saving  love. 

J.  S.  B.  M. 


"  THOU  ART  MY  GOD."  95 

God !  Thou  art  my  rock  of  strength, 

And  my  home  is  in  Thine  arms ; 
Thou  wilt  send  me  help  at  length, 

And  I  feel  no  wild  alarms. 
Sin  nor  death  can  pierce  the  shield 

Thy  defence  has  o'er  me  thrown ; 
Up  to  Thee  myself  I  yield, 

And  my  sorrows  are  Thine  own. 

Thou  my  shelter  from  the  blast, 

Thou  my  strong  defence  art  ever ; 
Though  my  sorrows  thicken  fast, 

Yet  I  know  Thou  leav'st  me  never. 
When  my  foe  puts  forth  his  might, 

And  would  tread  me  in  the  dust, 
To  this  rock  I  take  my  flight, 

And  I  conquer  him  through  trust. 

When  my  trials  tarry  long, 

Unto  Thee  I  look  and  wait, 
Knowing  none,  though  keen  and  strong, 

Can  my  faith  in  Thee  abate. 
And  this  faith  I  long  have  nurst, 

Comes  alone,  0  God,  from  Thee ; 
Thou  my  heart  didst  open  first, 

Thou  didst  set  this  hope  in  me. 


96  "  THOU  ART  MY  GOD." 

Christians,  cast  on  Him  your  load, 

To  your  tower  of  refuge  fly ; 
Know  He  is  the  living  God, 

Ever  to  His  creatures  nigh. 
Seek  His  ever  open  door 

In  your  hours  of  utmost  need ; 
All  your  hearts  before  Him  pour, 

He  will  send  you  help  with  speed. 

Yea,  on  Thee,  my  God,  I  rest, 

Letting  life  float  calmly  on, 
For  I  know  the  last  is  best, 

When  the  crown  of  joy  is  won. 
In  Thy  might  all  things  I  bear, 

In  Thy  love  find  bitters  sweet ; 
And,  with  all  my  grief  and  care, 

Sit  in  patience  at  Thy  feet. 

Lyra  Germanica. 


VII. 

Cije  Eemembratuer, 


Job  xiii.  25. 
"  Thou  writest  bitter  things  against  me." 

Sickness  is  often  a  painful  remembrancer.  The 
past,  which  seemed  forgotten,  comes  back  with 
its  train  of  omissions  and  commissions,  promises 
and  vows,  which  never  were  fulfilled — privileges 
and  warnings  which  passed  by  unimproved — - 
and  solemn  knockings  at  the  chamber  of  the 
soul  which  made  only  a  slight  and  momentary 
impression.  Have  we  never  realised  this  ? 
Have  not  our  hearts  trembled  at  the  revived 
record  of  other  days  ?  But  oh,  what  is  our  re- 
collection when  compared  with  the  omniscience 
of  God  !  He  has  seen  and  recorded  thoughts 
and  words  and  deeds  from  our  very  childhood. 
To  Him  all  hearts  are  open,  and  from  Him  no 
secrets  are  hid.  He  has  watched  our  every 
movement,  and  there  has  not  been  within  us  a 
secret  purpose,  a  sinful  desire,  an  unholy  thought, 
which  has  escaped  His  notice.  How  often  has 
He  warned  us  when  we  were  treading  the  path  of 
sin, —  warned  us  by  His  providence,  and  by  His 
grace, — warned  us  by  His  word  and  ministers, 


100        THE  REMEMBRANCER. 

— warned  us  by  blighted  hopes  and  shattered 
plans, — warned  us  by  threatening  to  snap  asunder 
the  frail  cord  of  life,  and  terminate  for  ever  the 
possibility  of  a  return  to  Him  !  Well  may  our 
hearts  fail  us  when  we  consider  what  "  bitter 
things  "  God  has  written  against  us.  "  When  I 
called  ye  did  not  answer." — "  They  would  none 
of  my  counsel ;  they  despised  all  my  reproof." — 
"  They  hearkened  not,  but  hardened  their  neck." 
t— "  Ye  will  not  come  unto  me  that  ye  might  have 
life."  Oh,  how  often  these  "  bitter  things"  have 
been  written  against  us  !  And  every  year  has 
added  to  their  number  and  aggravation,  for  every 
year  we  owed  it  to  the  mercy  and  forbearance  of 
God,  that  He  did  not  cut  us  off  in  the  midst  of  our 
sins.  Blessed  be  God,  dark  as  the  record  has 
been, — stained  with  the  blackest  ingratitude,  and 
foul  and  polluted  as  it  must  have  appeared  to 
11  Him  who  is  of  purer  eyes  than  to  behold  ini- 
quity," we  are  not  abandoned  to  despair  !  No, 
there  is  hope — hope  in  the  crucified  Saviour, 
hope  in  His  precious  blood,  hope  in  His  all- 
sufficient  atonement,  hope  in  His  all-prevailing 
intercession.  Lamb  of  God  !  we*  would  turn  to 
Thee  I  By  Thine  agony  and  bloody  sweat,  by 
Thy  cross  and  passion,  by  Thy  precious  death 


THE  REMEMBRANCER.         101 

and  burial,  by  Thy  glorious  resurrection  and  as- 
cension, we  do  beseech  Thee  have  mercy  upon  us ! 

"  Is  there  forgiveness  in  our  Father's  home  ? 
Are  penitential  tears  regarded  there  ? 
Will  Jesus  ever  say,  Thy  lost  ones  come 
To  seek  Thy  pardon  and  Thy  home  to  share? 

"  Father,  I  know  that  Thy  forgiving  love 

Hails  with  delight  a  contrite  sinner's  tear ; 

And  Thou  wilt  welcome  to  Thy  home  above 

A  child  to  whom  the  Saviour's  name  is  dear." 

Yes,  fellow-sufferers,  let  our  ground  of  hope 
be  in  Christ,  the  Daysman  between  God  and 
us, — the  Mediator  who  for  our  sakes  was  nailed 
to  the  accursed  tree, — the  mighty  Intercessor 
who  pleads  for  us  at  the  Father's  right  hand. 
"  Bitter  things "  have  been  written  against  us, 
and  we  have  no  words, — no  merits  of  our  own 
to  plead;  we  are  "poor,  and  wretched,  and 
miserable,  and  blind,  and  naked:" 

"  Nothing  in  our  hands  we  bring, 
Simply  to  the  Cross  we  cling." 

But  there  we  cannot  perish.  Deep  as  is  the 
mountain  of  our  guilt,  deeper,  far  deeper  is  that 
ocean  of  infinite  love  in  which  God  has  promised 


102        THE  REMEMBRANCER. 

to  bury  it  for  ever,  and  to  remember  it  no  more 
against  us.  Ob  mercy  unspeakable !  Tbese 
"  bitter  things "  let  us  mourn  over  : — let  us 
cherish  at  their  recollection  that  "  godly  sorrow 
which  worketh  repentance  unto  salvation,  not  to 
be  repented  of ;" — let  us  grieve  because  we  ever 
sinned  against  a  God  so  gracious,  merciful,  and 
compassionate, — against  a  Saviour  so  loving, 
tender,  and  sympathising, — against  a  Holy  Spirit 
so  patient,  and  gentle,  and  forbearing.  Let  us 
pray  for  grace  to  serve  our  God  with  more  fide- 
lity,— that  in  everything  we  may  seek  to  please 
Him, — that  our  inmost  hearts  may  be  given  up 
to  Him, — and  that  we  may  present  "  our  bodies 
and  spirits  as  living  sacrifices  unto  Him,  which 
is  our  reasonable  service." 

And,  in  our  present  season  of  sickness  and 
suffering,  let  us  resolve  to  take  cheerfully  what- 
ever God  may  see  meet  to  appoint.  Pain,  and 
distress,  and  sorrow,  are  what  we  have  justly 
merited,  but  "  the  Lord  is  very  pitiful  and  of 
tender  mercy."  He  may  have  compassion  upon 
us,  and  send  relief.  Having  cast  all  our  care 
on  Him,  let  us  believe  that  He  careth  for  us, — 
that  He  has,  and  can  have,  no  other  object  in  His 
dealings  towards  us,  but  simply  and  solely  that 


THE  BEMEMBRANCEB.        103 

of  making  us  holy  and  happy  for  ever.  Not  that 
pain  and  sorrow  have,  of  themselves  the  power 
to  make  us  so ;  they  naturally  irritate  and  vex 
the  spirit ;  but,  by  God's  blessing,  suffering  is 
made  the  means  of  carrying  on  His  cure  within 
us.  Under  the  leading  of  His  grace,  affliction 
draws  us  to  Him  who  alone  can  renew  and 
sanctify  the  heart ; — it  brings  us  to  Him  who 
is  the  true  and  only  Purifier, — who  will  remove 
from  us  the  pollution  of  sin, — who  will  anew 
sprinkle  on  our  souls  the  precious  blood  of 
Christ, — who  will  bend  our  wills  to  the  will  of 
God,  so  that  we  shall  love  what  He  loves,  and 
choose  what  He  chooses,  and  willingly,  patiently 
resign  ourselves  to  Him,  ready  to  do,  or  suffer 
anything  that  He  requires  us.  Then  let  us 
humbly  and  earnestly  wait  for  Him, — let  us 
seek,  by  prayer,  the  purifying  influences  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  and  cling  to  the  cross  of  Jesus  as 
the  foundation  of  our  hope.  Let  us  seek  to 
realise  the  loving-kindness  of  our  heavenly 
Father  in  so  "caring"  for  us,  and  let  us  not 
desire  to  escape  any  trials  or  afflictions  He  may 
see  meet  to  send,  lest  we  should  thereby  be  only 
escaping  one  great  and  necessary  means  of  pre- 
paring us  for  future  blessedness. 


104         THE  REMEMBRANCER. 

Although  memory  may  have  written  "  bitter 
things  "  against  us, — although  we  have  too  much 
reason  to  abase  ourselves  in  the  sight  of  God, 
because  of  the  weakness  of  our  faith, — the  cold- 
ness of  our  love, — our  want  of  zeal  in  His  service, 
— our  neglect  of,  and  our  lukewarmness  in 
religious  duty, — although  "  we  have  left  undone 
those  things  which  we  ought  to  have  done,  and 
done  those  things  which  we  ought  not  to  have 
done,"  yet,  blessed  be  God,  we  are  not  left  with- 
out comfort  and  hope.  Though  in  ourselves  we 
have  neither  strength,  nor  life,  nor  hope,  we 
have  all  these  in  the  free  mercies  of  God,  through 
His  Son  Jesus  Christ  our  Kedeemer.  We  are 
invited  to  come  with  our  guilt  and  misery  to 
the  foot  of  the  cross, — there  to  be  sprinkled  with 
atoning  blood, — there  to  receive  the  assurance 
of  pardoning  mercy  and  sanctifying  grace, — there 
to  obtain  that  rest,  that  peace,  that  comfort, 
which  are  in  vain  sought  after  in  a  weary  and 
disappointing  world.  "  The  blood  of  Jesus 
Christ  cleanseth  from  all  sin."  "  He  is  able  to 
save  unto  the  uttermost  all  who  come  unto  God 
by  Him,  seeing  He  ever  liveth  to  make  inter- 
cession for  them."  "  He  was  made  sin  for  us, 
though  He  knew  no  sin,  that  we  might  be  made 


THE  REMEMBRANCER.         105 

the  righteousness  of  God  in  Him/'  Our  sin 
was  laid  upon  Him,  and  undertaken  by  Him. 
"He  was  wounded  for  our  transgressions,  He 
was  bruised  for  our  iniquities ;  the  chastisement 
of  our  peace  was  upon  Him;  and  with  His 
stripes  we  are  healed." 

Oh  !  then,  whilst  cast  down  by  the  remem- 
brance of  the  "  bitter  things  "  recorded  against 
us,  let  us  earnestly  plead  the  atoning  blood  of 
Christ,  and  strive  to  exercise  a  believing  con- 
fidence in  the  all-sufficiency  of  our  dear  Ke- 
deemer.  Let  us  have  a  simple,  heartfelt  reliance 
on  the  Word  of  God,  and  believe  that  these 
gracious  assurances  are  verily  addressed  to 
us  : — "  Whosoever  calleth  on  the  name  of  the 
Lord  shall  be  saved."  "  This  is  the  record, 
that  God  hath  given  to  us  eternal  life,  and  this 
life  is  in  His  Son."  Let  us  pray  for  forgiveness, 
believing  that  what  we  ask  we  shall  assuredly 
receive.  "  If  we  confess  our  sins,  He  is  faithful 
and  just  to  forgive  us  our  sins,  and  to  cleanse  us 
from  all  unrighteousness."  "  If  any  man  sin, 
we  have  an  Advocate  with  the  Father,  Jesus 
Christ  the  righteous." 

This, — this  is  the  only  true  foundation  of 
peace  of  soul  and  content  of  mind, — that  our 


106        THE  BEMEMBBANGEB. 

peace  is  made  with  God,  by  Jesus  Christ  His  only 
Son,  who  has  taken  our  sins  upon  Himself,  and 
borne  the  punishment  of  them,  and  who,  as  a 
free,  unmerited  gift,  has  given  us  His  righteous- 
ness, by  which  we  are  made  righteous  be- 
fore God,  and  are  "  accepted  in  the  Beloved/' 
"  Being  justified  by  faith,  we  have  peace  with 
God,  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ ;  by  whom 
also  we  have  access  by  faith  into  this  grace 
wherein  we  stand,  and  rejoice  in  hope  of  the 
glory  of  God."  "  God  so  loved  the  world,  that 
He  gave  His  only-begotten  Son,  that  whosoever 
believeth  in  Him  should  not  perish,  but  have 
everlasting  life."  Yes,  God  made  us  to  find 
our  happiness  in  His  faith,  His  love,  His  fear. 
In  that  we  can  be  happy,  (and  we  are  led  to  it 
only  by  the  cross  of  Christ,)  but  out  of  that, 
happiness  can  never  be  ours.  We  may  have 
mirth, — we  may  have  gladness, — we  may  have 
transient  joy ;  but  abiding  peace,  unchanging 
happiness,  that  fears  no  vicissitude  of  earth,  or 
disclosure  of  eternity,  we  cannot  possess.  "Bitter 
things"  will  be  recorded  against  us, — winch  will 
rouse  conscience  from  its  dream  of  security,  and 
fill  us  with  dread  and  alarm. 

But,  if  we  have  made  Christ  the  portion  of  our 


THE  REMEMBRANCER.        107 

souls, — if  we  have  looked  unto  Him  by  faith,  as 
"  the  Lamb  of  God  which  taketh  away "  our 
sins,  and  the  sins  of  all  who  believe  in  His 
name,  then  is  the  promise  given  to  us,  "  I,  even 
I,  am  He  that  blotteth  out  thy  transgressions 
for  mine  own  sake,  and  will  not  remember  thy 
sins/'  The  "  bitter  things  "  recorded  against  us 
are  blotted  out  from  the  Book  of  God's  Kemem- 
brance, — and,  although  there  can  never  be  for- 
getfulness  on  the  part  of  God, — although  His 
memory  retains  every  sin  which  we  have  com- 
mitted, surer  and  firmer  than  if  all  our  sins 
were  written  on  leaves  of  brass, — yet  in  gracious 
condescension,  He  speaks  after  the  manner  of 
men,  and  says,  that  He  will  "  blot  them  out," — 
that  He  will  "  not  remember"  them. 

Oh,  surely,  such  love — such  marvellous  grace 
and  mercy,  may  well  assure  us,  that  "  He  who 
spared  not  His  own  Son,  but  gave  Him  up  to 
the  death  for  us,  will  with  Him  also  freely  give 
us  all  things ;" — that  He  loves  us  too  tenderly 
to  send  anything  that  would  really  harm  us. 
Tried  one  1  take  comfort  from  this  thought,  and 
believe  that  your  troubles  and  sorrows, — painful 
though  they  must  be, — are  sent  in  tenderest 
love.     You  are  "chastened  of  the  Lord,  that 


108         TEE  REMEMBRANCER. 

you  may  not  be  condemned  with  the  world." 
It  is  He  who  changes  the  bloom  of  health  into 
the  languor  of  disease  ; — it  is  He  who  strews  the 
path  with  thorns, — interrupts  your  comforts  and 
enjoyments, — deprives  you  of  those  whom  you 
love,  and  fills  your  home  with  mourning,  lamen- 
tation, and  woe.  But,  He  does  so  for  the  wisest 
reasons.  He  sees  that  such  painful  discipline  is 
"  needed."  He  desires  to  make  you  a  "  partaker 
of  His  holiness/'  He  would  have  you  "con- 
formed to  the  image  of  His  Son."  He  is  render- 
ing you  "  meet  for  the  inheritance  of  the  saints 
in  light."  Receive,  then,  your  trials  meekly 
from  your  Father's  gracious  hand,  and  pray  that 
by  them  He  would  work  out  His  own  blessed  pur- 
pose in  you,  and,  at  last,  bring  you  safely  home 
to  Himself.  Trust  ever  in  His  love.  He  knows 
every  throb  of  thy  brow, — each  hardly-drawn 
breath, — each  beating  of  the  fevered  pulse, — each 
sinking  of  the  aching  head,  and  He  says  to  you — 

"  Take  thou  thy  cross,  my  son  ;  nor  mayst  thou 
choose ; 
The  cross  I  give  is  best ;  do  not  refuse. 
Kenounce  thy  will ;  seek  nothing  of  thine  own ; 
"Follow  thou  Me ;  thou  canst  not  walk  alone." 


THE  BEMEMBRANCER.        109 

Heavenly  Father,  give  me  grace  at  all  times 
to  trust  Thy  love,  and  to  receive  thankfully  what 
Thou  sendest.  Lord,  I  am  not  worthy  of  the 
least  of  Thy  mercies.  I  have  sinned,  and  done 
very  wickedly.  My  transgressions  are  more 
than  can  be  numbered,  and  the  remembrance  of 
them  is  very  grievous  to  me.  But  Thou,  0 
God,  art  rich  in  mercy.  For  the  sake  of  Thy 
dear  Son,  my  Saviour  Jesus  Christ,  do  Thou 
forgive  mine  iniquities,  and  remember  them  no 
more  against  me  for  ever.  Oh,  increase  my 
love  of  holiness !  Let  the  mind  that  was  in 
Christ  be  also  in  me.  Transform  me  by  Thy 
Holy  Spirit  into  His  blessed  image,  so  that  I 
may  love  what  Thou  lovest,  and  choose  what 
Thou  choosest,  and  make  it  my  meat  and  drink 
to  do  Thy  holy  will.  Grant  that  I  may  ever 
bear  with  patience  the  discipline  I  am  called 
to  undergo,  assured  that  Thou  wilt  not  leave 
me  nor  forsake  me,  and  that  all  things  will 
be  ordered  for  my  happiness  and  wellbeing 
throughout  eternity. 

Give  me  grace,  0  God,  to  glorify  Thee  in 
time,  that  I  may  enjoy  Thee  for  evermore. 
And  all  I  ask  is  for  the  sake  of  Jesus  Christ 
my  Saviour. — Amen. 


110        THE  REMEMBRANCER. 

0  Saviour  I  let  my  wearied  spirit  rest 

Beneath  the  shadow  of  Thy  cross,  and  send 

Sweet  thoughts  of  peace  to  soothe  my  troubled 
breast, 
And  o'er  my  soul  their  dove-like  wings  extend. 

Where  shall  I  cast  the  burden  of  my  life, 
The  burden  of  my  sins,  if  not  on  Thee  ? 

My  soul  is  grieved  and  wearied  with  the  strife 
Of  this  rude  world ;  receive  and  comfort  me. 

Beneath  the  shadow  of  the  cross,  Thy  child 
Shall  find  a  refuge  and  a  calm  retreat, 

Where  sainted  souls,  with  Heaven  reconciled, 
Await  the  hour  when  earth  and  heaven  meet 

J.  E.  B. 


HOLY  TEAKS. 

Yes,  thou  mayst  weep,  for  Jesus  shed 
Such  tears  as  those  thou  sheddest  now, 

When,  for  the  living  or  the  dead, 
Sorrow  lay  heavy  on  His  brow. 

He  sees  thee  weep,  yet  doth  not  blame 
The  weakness  of  thy  flesh  and  heart ; 


TEE  REMEMBRANCER.         Ill 

Thy  human  nature  is  the  same 
As  that  in  which  He  took  a  part. 

He  knows  its  weakness,  for  He  felt 
The  crashing  power  of  pain  and  woe  ; 

How  body,  soul,  and  spirit  melt, 

And  faint  beneath  the  stunning  blow. 

What  if  poor  sinners  count  thy  grief 
The  sign  of  an  unchasten'd  will  ? 

He  who  can  give  thy  soul  relief, 

Knows  that  thou  art  submissive  stilL 

Turn  thee  to  Him,  to  Him  alone  ; 

For  all  that  our  poor  lips  can  say 
To  soothe  thee,  broken-hearted  one, 

Would  fail  to  comfort  thee  to-day. 

We  will  not  speak  to  thee,  but  sit 
In  prayerful  silence  by  thy  side ; 

Grief  has  its  ebbs  and  flows ;  'tis  fit 
Our  love  should  wait  the  ebbing  tide. 

Jesus  himself  will  comfort  thee 
In  His  own  time,  in  His  own  way ; 

And  haply  more  than  "  two  er  three" 
Unite  in  prayer  for  thee  to-day. 

J.  E. 


112        THE  REMEMBRANCER. 

Blessed  Saviour,  wilt  Thou  now 
From  Thy  throne  of  glory  bow  ? 
Wilt  Thou  from  Thy  starry  sphere 
Sinners'  sorrow  stoop  to  hear  ? 
Wilt  Thou  wash  them  in  the  blood 
Of  the  suffering  Lamb  of  God  ? 

By  Thy  cross  and  passion  save  us ; 
By  the  hope  those  sufferings  gave  us  ; 
By  Thine  agony  and  sweat ; 
By  Thy  prayers  on  Olivet ; 
By  Thy  sighs  and  by  Thy  tears ; 
By  Thy  people's  hopes  and  fears  ; 
By  the  peace  vouchsafed  to  Thee 
When  in  dark  Gethsemane  ! 

By  the  sacramental  tide 
Gushing  from  Thy  wounded  side ; 
By  the  load  of  others'  sin, 
That  oppress'd  Thy  soul  within ; 
By  the  wondrous  love  Thou  bore  us, 
That  by  death  Thou  shouldst  restore  us  ; 
By  that  mercy  and  that  love, 
Hear  us,  Lord,  in  heaven  above  I 

In  the  midnight  of  our  sadness, 
In  the  noontide  of  our  gladness ; 


THE  REMEMBRANCER.         113 

Through  each  changing  scene  of  life, 
Calm  and  sunshine,  storm  and  strife  ; 
At  the  last  dread  parting  hour, 
In  Thy  judgment's  might  and  power — 

Lord,  deliver  and  defend  us ; 
Let  Thy  Spirit  still  attend  us ; 
Be  Thy  smile  our  beacon  star, 
Glimmering  through  the  gloom  afar, 
Here, — the  surety  Thou  art  nigh, 
There, — the  blest  reality  I 

Parish  Musings. 


vul 

JBot  Jfotsaiteru 


Matt.  xiv.  23,  24. 

"  When  the  evening  was  come,  he  was  there  alone.  But  the 
ship  was  now  in  the  midst  of  the  sea,  tossed  with  waves : 
for  the  wind  was  contrary. " 

The  narrative  of  which  these  words  form  a  part 
has  often  been  a  source  of  great  comfort  to  the 
tried  and  suffering  believer.  Every  little  inci- 
dent is  of  priceless  value,  as  it  brings  more  and 
more  fully  home  to  the  heart,  the  tender  sym- 
pathy of  Jesus,  His  sleepless  care,  His  ready 
help,  His  almighty  power.  We  are  told  that,  at 
the  close  of  a  busy  and  anxious  day,  when  our 
Lord  had  miraculously  fed  ixve  thousand  per- 
sons with  five  loaves  and  two  fishes, — when  the 
people,  astonished  at  His  power,  had  resolved  to 
make  Him  their  King, — He  "  constrained  His 
disciples  to  get  into  a  ship,  and  to  go  before 
Him  unto  the  other  side  "  of  the  sea  of  Galilee, 
whilst  He  Himself  retired  to  a  mountain, — there 
for  a  short  season  to  enjoy  the  communion  of 
His  heavenly  Father.  Suddenly  a  violent  tem- 
pest arose.     The  terrified  disciples  plied  their 


118  NOT  FORSAKEN. 

oars,  but  in  vain.  Their  little  bark  was  "  in 
the  midst  of  the  sea,  tossed  with  waves,"  the 
plaything  of  the  storm,  and  "  the  wind  was 
contrary."  Darkness  gathered  round  them, 
and,  worse  than  all,  they  were  alone;  for 
"  Jesus  had  not  come  unto  them." 

"What  a  striking  representation  of  the  be- 
liever still  I  How  often  has  he  to  encounter, 
and  that,  too,  at  his  Master's  bidding,  the  stormy 
gales  of  trouble  ?  The  ocean  of  life,  how  sud- 
denly is  it  lashed  into  fury,  and  despite  all  our 
efforts,  our  feeble  bark  is  driven  to  and  fro ! 
It  has  been  thus  with  Christ's  disciples  in  every 
age !  While  they  have  the  promise  of  deliver- 
ance out  of  peril, — they  have  no  promise  that 
they  will  be  exempted  from  encountering  it. 
"  The  same  afflictions  have  been  accomplished 
in  the  brethren  "  since  time  began.  They  who 
have  now  entered  the  peaceful  haven,  where  no 
adverse  winds  can  rage, — all  toiled,  amid  simi- 
lar billows,  on  life's  stormy  sea.  The  vessel 
was  saved  from  shipwreck, — but,  not  saved  from 
being  tempest-tossed.  Amid  the  countless 
throng  of  the  redeemed  there  is  not  one,  of 
whom  it  may  not  be  said,  he  came  "  out  of 
great  tribulation."    It  is  the  history  of  all  the 


NOT  FOBSAKEN.  119 

saints  in  glory, — the  earthly  experience  of  all 
those  ransomed  ones  who  "  washed  their  robes, 
and  made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the 
Lamb."  Think  of  their  painful  trials, — their 
grievous  losses, — their  bitter  disappointments, — 
their  perplexing  cares, — their  fearful  mockings 
and  scourgings, — their  buffetings  and  imprison- 
ments and  deaths, — as  they  are  recorded  for  our 
instruction  in  the  Word  of  God  !  Think,  too, 
of  the  furious  storms  which  He  had  to  encoun- 
ter, who  "  was  made  like  to  His  brethren," — 
who  "  was  in  all  points  tempted  like  as  we  are." 
What  a  dread  night, — what  a  fearful  tempest 
was  that  in  which  He  was  constrained  in  the 
bitterness  of  His  anguished  soul  to  cry,  "  My 
God,  my  God,  why  hast  thou  forsaken  me?" 
While  the  trembling  disciples  were  thus  striv- 
ing to  cross  the  lake, — opposed  by  an  adverse 
wind  and  a  boisterous  sea,  the  Saviour  was 
praying  alone  on  the  mountain.  He  had  not, 
however,  forgotten  them.  Although  personally 
withdrawn,  His  eye  followed  them  in  the  gloom 
of  night,  and  amid  the  furious  waves.  He  saw 
the  danger  which  threatened, — He  knew  the 
fears  which  then  perplexed  the  hearts  of  His 
followers.      And  even  so,  tempest-tossed  be- 


120  NOT  FORSAKEN. 

liever,  His  all-seeing  eye  rests  upon  thee.  As, 
on  that  lone  mountain-height,  He  watched  the 
storm-driven  disciples  on  the  sea  of  Galilee,  so 
now  in  the  heights  of  glory,  the  Saviour  still 
watches  over  His  people.  He  knows  every  dan- 
ger which  threatens  them, — every  difficulty, 
trial  and  temptation,  which  fills  their  hearts 
with  terror  and  alarm.  He  is  not  unmindful  of 
them.  He  has  not  forgotten  them.  Though 
the  season  of  succour  be  deferred,  it  is  delayed 
only  for  the  fuller  exhibition  of  Divine  faithful- 
ness, and  love,  and  power.  When  His  time  has 
come,  (and  it  is  ever  the  best  time,)  He  will 
appear  for  their  help  and  deliverance.  He  fore- 
saw the  toil  and  danger  of  His  disciples  on  the 
sea  of  Galilee.  He  purposely  sent  them  away, 
that  they  might  encounter  the  fury  of  the  storm. 
He  who  could  have  prevented  their  sufferings 
by  His  power,  permitted  them  in  His  wisdom ; 
— that  He  might  show  them  how  little  they 
could  do  of  themselves;— that  He  might  exercise 
their  faith  and  patience,  and  that  He  might 
glorify  His  mercy  in  their  deliverance.  Even 
so,  Christian,  He  permits  thy  sorroivs.  Every 
night  of  pain  and  sickness, — every  wave  of 
trouble  that  rolls  over  thee,  comes  at  His  com- 


NOT  FORSAKEN.  121 

mand.  He  knows  that  they  are  necessary.  He 
permits  them  in  tenderest  love,  and  He  has 
told  thee  to  expect  them.  "  In  the  world,  ye 
shall  have  tribulation."  In  common  with  all 
Christ's  followers,  yon  must  drink  of  the  bitter 
cup  of  adversity,  and  be  tried — perhaps  sorely 
tried — in  the  furnace  of  affliction,  for 

"  The  path  of  sorrow,  and  that  path  alone, 
Leads  to  the  land  where  sorrow  is  unknown." 

And,  this  night  of  storm  and  tempest,  to  which 
the  believer  is  exposed,  may  often  be  a  long  and 
dreary  one, — so  long,  that  it  is  the  fourth  watch 
ere  deliverance  is  vouchsafed.  Troubles  and 
calamities  may  surround  him  on  every  side, 
and  the  Saviour's  presence  be,  for  a  season, 
withdrawn.  How  did  all  things  seem  to  con- 
spire against  the  fearful  disciples  !  The  night 
was  sullen  and  dark, — their  Master  was  absent, 
—the  sea  was  boisterous, — the  winds  were  high 
and  contrary.  Had  their  Master  been  with 
them,  however  wildly  the  elements  might  rage, 
they  would  have  felt  secure ; — had  their  Master 
been  absent,  still  if  the  sea  had  been  quiet  or 
the  wind  favourable,  the  passage  might  have 
been  endured ; — now,  both  season,  and  sea  and 


122  NOT  FORSAKEN. 

wind,  and  their  Master's  desertion,  combined  to 
render  them  miserable.  And  thus  it  some- 
times happens,  through  the  overruling  provi- 
dence of  God,  that  no  glimpse  of  comfort  shall 
appear,  through  the  long,  dark  night,  to  glad- 
den the  trembling  heart ; — dangers  and  distress 
are  all  around ; — the  weary,  toilworn  disciple  is 
beaten  back  by  opposing  doubts  and  fears ; — and 
eagerly  as  he  looks  out  through  the  surrounding 
gloom,  no  ray  of  comfort  darts  across  it — all  is 
thick,  impenetrable  darkness.  Oh,  how  often 
do  our  hearts  then  fail  us,  and  we  begin  to  cry, 
"Lord,  why  hast  Thou  forsaken  me?  why  do 
these  storms  beat  upon  me?  wherefore  dost 
Thou  not  hearken  to  my  cry  and  come  to  my 
help?" 

"  Hearken  to  thy  cry,"  0  child  of  God !  He 
has  heard  it  already.  Yes,  amid  the  songs  of 
angels  and  the  anthems  of  adoring  hosts,  thy 
feeble  voice  has  reached  the  courts  of  heaven. 
He  who  loves  thee  with  more  than  a  brother's 
love  is  even  now  watching  thee, — noting  thy 
sorrows,  caring  for  thy  griefs,  sympathising  in 
all  thy  pains  and  sufferings. 

He  will  assuredly  "  come  to  thy  help."  He 
delays  for  the  wisest  and  best  reasons.     His 


NOT  FORSAKEN.  123 

present  intercession  has  gained  much  for  thee. 
It  has  enabled  you  to  struggle  on  till  now  ; — it 
has  given  you  strength  to  resist  despair ; — it  has 
kept  you  praying,  wrestling,  entreating; — and 
soon  it  will  accomplish  more,  far  more.  Take  it 
as  the  pledge  that  Jesus  loves  you,  when,  though 
the  storm  has  continued  to  rage,  and  the  calm 
has  been  delayed,  the  waves  have  not  been 
allowed  to  overwhelm  you.  His  time  is  the 
best  time.  Yet  a  little  while,  and  the  hour  of 
deliverance  will  arrive.  Yet  a  little  while,  and 
you  will  have  rest,  and  peace,  and  quiet.  You 
will  find  that  it  was  good  for  you  to  have  been 
afflicted, — that  your  faith  was  strengthened  by 
trial, — that  your  progress  heavenward,  instead 
of  being  retarded,  was  hastened  by  the  storm, — 
that  the  winds  you  dreaded,  were  wafting  you 
onward  in  your  voyage,  and  that  the  waves  which 
seemed  to  threaten  you  with  death,  were  bearing 
you  to  the  haven  of  eternal  calm. 

Oh,  then,  whatever  be  your  present  state, — 
whatever  the  cares,  and  troubles,  and  griefs  which 
burden  your  spirit,  —  whatever  the  darkness 
which  has  been  permitted  to  enwrap  you,  strive 
ever  to  feel,  that  He  who  has,  for  a  season,  seemed 
to  leave  you  all  alone  on  a  stormy  sea, — He  who 


124  NOT  FORSAKEN. 

has  spoken  to  the  tempest,  and  -  allowed  the 
waves  to  rear  their  foaming  crests,  is  even  now 
pleading  for  you  on  the  mount, — even  now 
watching  you,  till  the  hour  arrive  when  He  shall 
say,  "  Peace,  be  still ;"  and  drawing  near  to  you, 
shall  whisper  these  consoling  words,  "It  is  I ; 
be  not  afraid." 

Be  this  your  earnest  prayer  to  Jesus : — 

"  Amidst  the  roaring  of  the  sea, 
My  soul  still  hangs  her  hopes  on  Thee ; 
Thy  constant  love,  Thy  faithful  care, 
Is  all  that  saves  me  from  despair. 

"  Though  tempest-tost,  and  half  a  wreck, 
My  Saviour  through  the  floods  I  seek ; 
Let  neither  winds  nor  stormy  main 
Force  back  my  shatter'd  bark  again/' 

Heavenly  Father,  give  me  grace  to  trust  in 
Thee  at  all  times.  Thou  knowest  ^hat  is  best 
for  Thy  sinful  creatures,  and  in  Thy  wisdom 
designest  good  to  them  by  affliction.  Teach  me 
to  acknowledge  the  mercy  of  Thy  dispensations, 
and  the  advantages  of  a  bed  of  sickness.  Make 
me  to  rejoice  in  the  means  which  Thou  hast 
employed  for  strengthening  my  faith,  increasing 


NOT  FORSAKEN.  125 

my  love  of  prayer,  and  bringing  me  to  a  sense 
of  my  own  utter  helplessness.  Oh,  grant  that 
in  the  midst  of  my  distress  I  may  be  able  to  feel 
assured  that  my  Saviour  is  interceding  for  me, 
and  that  in  His  own  good  time  He  will  appear 
for  my  help  and  deliverance.  Suffer  me  not  to 
give  way  to  fear  and  despondency,  or  to  fall 
into  despair.  Give  me  patience  under  my  suf- 
ferings, and  a  hearty  resignation  to  Thy  will. 
Mercifully  hear  me,  0  my  Father,  and  give  me 
that  peace  which  Thou  hast  promised  to  those 
whose  hearts  are  set  on  Thee ;  for  the  sake  of 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who  was  once  a  man  of 
sorrows,  and  is  still  touched  with  a  feeling  of 
our  infirmities ;  to  whom,  as  our  merciful  High 
Priest,  be  glory  for  ever. — Amen. 


Though  strange  and  winding  seem  the  way 

While  yet  on  earth  I  dwell, 
In  heaven  my  heart  shall  gladly  say, 

Thou,  God,  dost  all  things  well ! 

Take  courage,  then,  my  soul,  nor  steep 

Thy  days  and  nights  in  tears ; 
Soon  shalt  thou  cease  to  mourn  and  weep. 

Though  dark  are  now  thy  fears. 


126  NOT  FORSAKEN. 

He  comes,  He  comes,  the  strong  to  save, 
He  comes,  nor  tarries  more ; 

His  light  is  breaking  o'er  the  wave, 
The  clouds  and  storms  are  o'er. 

Lyra  Germanica. 


Shades  of  coming  woe  surround  us, 
Springing  up  on  every  side ; 

Spread  Thy  sheltering  wings  around  us, 
That  in  peace  we  may  abide. 

Darker  now  they  gather  o'er  us, 
Like  the  shadows  of  Thy  rod, 

Stretching  down  the  path  before  us, 
And  we  tremble,  mighty  God  I 

Suffer  not  our  feet  to  stumble, 
Suffer  not  our  steps  to  slide ; 

Keep  us  lowly,  keep  us  humble, 
And  be  Thou  Thyself  our  guide. 

J.  E.  B. 


NOT  FORSAKEN.  127 

Show  me  the  way,  0  Lord, 

And  make  it  plain ; 
I  would  obey  Thy  word, 
Speak  yet  again ; 
I  will  not  take  one  step  until  I  know 
Which   way   it  is    that  Thou   wouldst  have 
me  go. 

0  Lord,  I  cannot  see- 
Vouchsafe  me  light ; 

The  mist  bewilders  me, 
Impedes  my  sight ; 
Hold  Thou  my  hand,  and  lead  me  by  Thy 

side; 
I  dare  not  go  alone,  be  Thou  my  guide. 

If  I  have  lost  my  way, 

Oh,  set  me  right  1 
If  going  now  astray, 
Hold  my  hand  tight ; 
This  labyrinth  is  intricate  and  long 
Show  me  the   right   path,  lest  I  choose  the 
wrong. 

1  cannot  see  Thy  face, 
Though  Thou  art  near  ; 


128  NOT  FORSAKEN. 

When  will  the  morning  chase 
Away  my  fear  ? 
When  shall  I   see  the  place  where  day  and 

night 
Exist  not,  for  Thy  glory  is  its  light  ? 

I  will  be  patient,  Lord, 

Trustful  and  still ; 
I  will  not  doubt  Thy  word — 
My  hopes  fulfil. 
How  can  I  perish,  clinging  to  Thy  side, 
My  Comforter,  my  Saviour,  and  my  Guide  ? 

J.  E.  B. 


Why,  my  soul,  so  sad  and  fearful, 
Crossing  Life's  dark  ocean  tide  ? 

Why  that  upward  eye  so  tearful  ? 
Christ  is  sleeping  by  thy  side  ! 

Though  the  storm  and  tossing  billow 
Seem  the  only  presence  near, 

Christ  is  nearer,  on  a  pillow 

Sleeping  by  thee — wherefore  fear  ? 


NOT  FOBSAKEN.  129 

Wakes  the  storm  ? — it  is  to  try  thee  ! 

Sleeps  the  Christ  ? — 'tis  for  thy  sake  ! 
Let  the  heart  but  feel  Him  nigh  thee, 

Lift  thy  voice,  and  He  '11  awake. 

He  '11  awake,  and  wind  and  ocean 
Soon  shall  bow  before  His  will ; 

All  thy  weary  heart's  emotion 

Hush'd  before  His  "  Peace,  be  still  !" 


3Se  not  afratU 


Matt,  xiv:  26,  27. 

4  And  when  the  disciples  saw  him  walking  on  the  sea,  they 
were  troubled,  saying,  It  is  a  spirit;  and  they  cried 
out  for  fear.  But  straightway  Jesus  spake  unto  them, 
saying,  Be  of  good  cheer ;  it  is  I ;  be  not  afraid." 

During  a  long  and  tempestuous  night,  the  dis- 
ciples had  to  struggle  against  the  stormy  billows. 
Doubtless  they  felt  weary,  oppressed,  well-nigh 
hopeless ;  but,  even  then  it  was,  that  deliverance 
was  vouchsafed.  After  having  been  driven  all 
night  long, — not  so  much  by  storms  and  waves, 
as  by  their  own  anxious,  troubled  thoughts, — in 
the  fourth  watch,  (which  was  near  to  the  morn- 
ing,) Jesus  came  to  them  ;  and,  so  strange  and 
unexpected  was  the  sight,  that  instead  of  joy, 
their  first  emotion  was  terror ; — "  they  cried  out 
for  fear:" — they  did  not  recognise  their  Deliverer, 
but  imagined  that  they  saw  a  spirit.  Yet,  He 
had  purposely  delayed  His  coming,  that  He 
might  exercise  their  patience, — that  He  might 
teach  them  to  wait  upon  Divine  Providence 
in  cases  of  extremity, — that    their    devotions 


134  BE  NOT  AFRAID 

might  be  more  whetted  by  delay, — and  that  they 
might  more  gladly  welcome  their  deliverance. 

For  the  selfsame  purpose  Jesus  often  delays 
His  coming  to  His  disciples  still.  He  permits 
sorrow  upon  sorrow  to  come  upon  them.  He 
leaves  them  in  pain,  and  sickness,  and  anguish 
till  they  are,  as  it  were,  in  the  depth  of  extremity. 
It  is  the  fourth  watch  with  them ;  but  the  storm 
still  rages,  the  darkness  continues,  and  their 
Protector,  their  Friend,  is  not  nigh.  Oh,  how 
often  in  such  a  dreary  hour  has  Jesus  come  to 
His  disciples, — come  to  them  amid  the  gloom, 
walking  in  majesty  upon  the  stormy  wave, — 
come  to  them  that  He  might  say  as  of  old  on  the 
sea  of  Galilee,  '*  It  is  I ;  be  not  afraid  I  * 

Yes,  Christian,  could  we  ask  those  blessed 
ones  who  are  now  hymning  His  praises  above, 
"  When  was  it  that  the  Saviour  was  felt  most 
precious  by  you  ?"  oh,  they  would  answer, 
"  'Twas  in  the  dreary  night  of  our  suffering, 
when  we  lay  helpless,  hopeless, — 'twas  in  the 
hour  of  extremity,  when  there  seemed  no  pro- 
spect of  deliverance, — 'twas  in  the  hour  of  sore 
distress,  when  our  hearts  were  torn  with  anguish, 
and  our  prayers  had  become  intensely  urgent, 
and  we  felt  that  if  He  did  not  help  us,  -  vain 


BE  NOT  AFRAID.  135 

was  the  help  of  man/ — 'twas  even  then  that  the 
blessed  Jesus  revealed  Himself,  calmed  our 
fears,  and  bade  us  be  of  good  cheer." 

Or  ask,  if  you  will,  that  patient  sufferer,  at 
whose  calmness  you  have  often  wondered,  and 
whose  language  is  ever  that  of  child-like  sub- 
mission and  acquiescence  to  the  will  of  God, 
— ask  the  same  question,  and  you  will  be  told, 
"  Never  did  I  feel  my  Lord  so  dear, — never  did  I 
realise  His  love,  His  power,  His  grace,  so  fully 
as  on  my  bed  of  languishing,  when  He  came  to 
me  in  the  night-watches,  and  permitted  me  to 
unbosom  myself  to  Him,  and  rest  my  weary 
head  upon  His  breast.  Oh,  it  was  then  He 
promised  to  be  ever  near  me, — to  strengthen  me 
under  suffering, — to  give  me  patience  to  endure 
my  Father's  will, — and  to  make  His  'grace  suffi- 
cient '  for  me.  I  know  that  He  sends  me  trial, 
— that  He  has  commissioned  this  sickness, — 
that  He  mingles  the  cup  which  I  have  to  drink, 
and  I  know  also  that  these  tilings  are  needed 
for  my  soul's  welfare.  Shall  I  not  then  wel- 
come what  is  sent  me  in  love,  when  I  know 
and  have  the  assurance  that  in  every  hour 
when  my  suffering  is  greatest,  my  pain  most 
agonising,  my  trouble  most  grievous  and  bur- 


136  BE  NOT  AFRAID. 

densome,  Jesus  will  come  to  my  help, — come  to 
encourage  and  strengthen  me, — come  to  show 
me  what  He  has  suffered  for  my  sake, — to  tell 
me  that  the  sorrows  which  oppress  my  soul 
weighed  more  heavily  on  His, — that  the  foes  I 
have  to  battle  with  more  fiercely  assailed  Him, — 
that  I  but  taste  the  bitter  cup,  whilst  He  had  to 
drain  it, — that  there  fall  on  me  only  a  few  drops 
of  the  mighty  tempest  which  spent  its  rage  on 
Him, — and  that,  as  He  '  learned  obedience  by 
the  things  He  suffered/  so  His  grace  will  enable 
me  to  do  it  also."  "  Thus  have  God's  children 
found  that  suffering  times  were  blessed  times, — 
that  they  never  had  such  nearness  to  their 
Father,  such  holy  freedom  with  Him,  and 
such  heavenly  comforts  from  Him,  as  under  the 
cross;  it  only  took  away  what  checked  the 
current  of  His  love,  His  peace,  His  joy  in  their 
hearts.  The  cross,  be  it  what  it  may, — pain, 
sickness,  calamity,  loss  of  friends,  fortune,  fame, 
— is  the  greatest  blessing  on  this  side  heaven; — 
because  by  it  the  Father  keeps  the  children  in 
the  closest  communion  that  they  have  with  Him 
on  earth, — by  it  He  .purges  them,  makes  them 
fruitful,  and  partakers  of  His  holiness, — by  it 
He  crucifies  the  life  of  sense,  deadens  them  to 


BE  NOT  AFRAID.  137 

the  world,  and  mortifies  their  lusts  and  pas- 
sions ;  and  by  it,  as  the  outward  man  perishes, 
the  inward  man  is  renewed  day  by  day."  They 
receive  new  life,  new  strength,  new  comfort, 
new  peace, — they  become  more  and  more  con- 
formed to  the  First-born  among  many  brethren, 
both  in  suffering  and  by  suffering, — they  tread 
the  steps  of  those  who  have  "  entered  into  rest/' 
and  come  up  "  from  the  wilderness,  leaning  on 
the  arm  of  the  Beloved." 

Christian,  take  comfort  when  you  think  of 
the  mighty  cloud  of  witnesses  who  would  thus 
testify  to  your  Saviour's  constant  care  and  un- 
changing love.  Think  on  what  He  has  already 
done  for  you.  He  groaned,  bled,  and  died  for 
you.  "  You  were  lost,  but  He  found  you, — an 
enemy,  but  He  reconciled  you, — a  captive,  but 
He  freed  you, — blind,  but  He  cured  you, — dead, 
but  He  quickened  you."  Oh  !  when  you  reflect 
how  He  has  watched  over  you  since  you  have 
received  the  knowledge  of  the  truth  as  it  is  in 
Jesus, — how  He  has  preserved  you  from  dan- 
gers, succoured  you  in  seasons  of  temptation, 
supported  you  in  times  of  trial,  cherished  you 
in  days  of  sickness,  comforted  you  in  the  hours 
of  despondency, — you  cannot  surely  imagine 


138  BE  NOT  AFRAID. 

that  He  will  now  desert  you, — you  cannot  be- 
lieve that  He  will  so  mar  the  work  of  His  own 
hands — the  labour  of  His  own  love — as  to  cast 
you  off,  and  leave  you  to  perish.  "  If  He  sought 
you  when  a  stranger,  will  He  not  take  care  of 
you  when  a  child  ?  If  the  enemy  was  loved, 
how  much  more  the  friend  ?  "Will  He  refuse  to 
answer  the  prayers  He  Himself  has  prompted, — 
to  fulfil  the  hopes  He  Himself  has  inspired, — 
to  honour  the  confidence  He  Himself  has  en- 
couraged,— and  to  complete  the  work  He  Him- 
self has  begun  ?"  Oh  no !  Learn  to  have  more 
confidence  in  your  Saviour, — more  reliance  upon 
Him  who  has  said,  "  I  have  loved  thee  with  an 
everlasting  love ;  therefore  with  loving-kindness 
have  I  drawn  thee," — more  dependence  upon 
Him  who  poured  out  His  precious  blood  to  re- 
concile you  to  God. 

Let  your  feeling  ever  be — 

"  Thou  didst  it,  who  art  gone  on  high, 

Where  many  mansions  be, 
There  to  prepare  a  glorious  home, 

And  deathless  friends  for  me. 
Shall  I  rebel  against  the  love 
That  fits  me  for  my  home  above  ? 


BE  NOT  AFRAID.  139 

Ah  no  !  e'en  through  this  load  of  fears 

My  heart  is  springing  up 
To  thank  Thee  for  the  boundless  grace 

That  overflows  my  cup  !  * 

Your  suffering  may  now  be  great, — your  days 
and  nights  may  be  full  of  anxiety  and  restless- 
ness,— the  star  of  hope  may  even  be  obscured  by 
the  mists  of  darkness  which  surround  you  ;  yet, 
take  courage  1  You  are  meeting  the  storm 
which  the  Saviour  himself  has  permitted  to 
rage  ;  you  are  battling  with  elements  which  He 
can  in  a  moment  control  ;  you  are  passing 
through  a  night  through  which  has  already 
passed  the  Man  of  sorrows ;  and  soon  He  will 
come  to  you.  That  voice  which  never  speaks 
in  vain  will  command  the  storm  to  cease.  Your 
best,  your  dearest  Friend — the  "  Consolation  of 
Israel " — will  say  to  you,  "  '  Be  of  good  cheer  ; ' 
I  know  how  thou  hast  born^  and  suffered  during 
these  weary  hours.  I  know  every  trial  through 
which  you  have  passed,  and  which  the  world 
has  never  known — sorrows  which  could  not,  and 
ought  not,  to  be  communicated  but  to  Me  alone. 
I  know  your  every  prayer  for  guidance — your 
every  effort  to  bear  well  and  patiently  what  I 


140  BE  NOT  AFBAIB. 

have  laid  upon  you,  and  to  profit  by  the  visita- 
tion. *  From  the  calm  shores  of  the  land  of 
everlasting  life  have  I  watched  thee,  my  trem- 
bling disciple,  toiling  through  the  waves  of  this 
troublesome  world ;  and  now  I  have  come  to 
thee  upon  the  billows,  that  I  may  be  near  thee 
in  the  time  of  extremest  peril ;  and,  behold,  I 
am  with  thee  in  the  ship !  Fear  not ;  they  who 
follow  Me  shall  never  walk  in  darkness  ;  thy 
footsteps  shall  not  slip  ;  mercy  shall  hold  thee 
up  when  dangers  encompass  thee  about ;  and 
though  the  sunshine  of  this  world's  joys  be  dim 
for  thee,  in  My  light  shalt  thou  see  light/  " 

"  Oh  thou  who  mournest  on  thy  way, 
With  longings  for  the  close  of  day, 
He  walks  with  thee,  that  Saviour  kind, 
And  gently  whispers,  '  Be  resign'd ; 
Bear  up — bear  on — the  end  shall  tell 
Thy  Lord  doth  order  all  things  well/  " 

Oh,  then,  afflicted  one,  be  not  cast  down, 
neither  be  dismayed.  Faint  not  under  your 
sorrows ;  but  strive  to  wear  out  your  three 
watches  of  tribulation  with  undaunted  patience 
and  holy  resolution.     Let  songs  of  praise  arise 


BE  NOT  AFRAID.  141 

from  the  ark  in  which  von  are  securely  borne 
along  amidst  the  raging  storm :  "  God  is  onr 
refuge  and  strength,  a  very  present  help  in 
trouble  :  therefore  will  not  we  fear,  though  the 
earth  be  removed,  and  though  the  mountains  be 
carried  into  the  midst  of  the  sea ;  though  the 
waters  thereof  roar  and  be  troubled,  though 
the  mountains  shake  with  the  swelling  thereof. 
Though  deep  calleth  unto  deep  at  the  noise  of 
thy  water-spouts,  and  all  thy  waves  and  thy 
billows  are  gone  over  me  ;  yet  the  Lord  will 
command  Ins  loving-kindness  in  the  day  time, 
and  in  the  night  his  song  shall  be  with  me,  and 
my  prayer  unto  the  God  of  my  life.  0  Lord 
God  of  hosts,  who  is  a  strong  Lord  like  unto 
thee  ?  or  to  thy  faithfulness  round  about  thee  ? 
Thou  rulest  the  raging  of  the  sea:  when  the 
waves  thereof  arise,  thou  stillest  them.  Why 
art  thou  cast  down,  0  my  soul  ?  and  why  art 
thou  disquieted  within  me  ?  hope  thou  in  God ; 
for  I  shall  yet  praise  him,  who  is  the  health  of 
my  countenance,  and  my  God." 

Let  these  strains  mingle  with  the  roaring  of 
the  storm,  and  the  dashing  of  the  angry  billows, 
and  soon  the  ear  of  faith  will  hear,  louder  than 
the  loud  wind,  those  accents  which  have  so  often 


142  BE  NOT  AFRAID. 

calmed  the  fears,  and  stilled  the  apprehensions 
of  Christ's  trembling  disciples :  "0  thou  af- 
flicted, tossed  with  tempest,  and  not  comforted! 
I  hid  my  face  from  thee  for  a  moment ;  but 
with  everlasting  kindness  will  I  have  mercy  on 
thee.  For  the  mountains  shall  depart,  and  the 
hills  be  removed,  but  my  Mndness  shall  not  de- 
part from  thee,  neither  shall  the  covenant  of  my 
peace  be  removed,  saith  the  Lord  that  hath 
mercy  on  thee.  Fear  not,  for  I  have  redeemed 
thee,  I  have  called  thee  by  thy  name :  thou  art 
mine.  When  thou  passest  through  the  waters, 
I  will  be  with  thee;  and  through  the  rivers, 
they  shall  not  overflow  thee.  For  I  am  the 
Lord  thy  God,  the  Holy  One  of  Israel,  thy  Sa- 
viour." 

"  Be  not  Thou  far  from  me,  0  Lord ;  for 
trouble  is  near.  Fearfulness  and  trembling 
have  taken  hold  upon  me ;  let  Thy  strength 
come  in  to  support  me.  The  sorrows  of  death 
compass  me.  Look  upon  mine  affliction  and 
my  pain,  and  forgive  all  my  sins.  Help  me,  0 
Lord,  for  Thou  art  my  hope.  Appear  for  me 
when  all  human  help  faileth.  Make  haste  to 
help  me.     Give  me  patience  to  bear  all  my 


BE  NOT  AFBAID.  143 

sufferings,  and  quietly  to  wait  Thy  time  for 
relief.  Thou  takest  pleasure  in  them  that  hope 
in  Thy  mercy.  Oh,  increase  my  faith  ;  sustain 
my  hope  in  Thee.  Forsake  me  not  when  my 
strength  faileth.  If  Thou,  Lord,  wilt  he  pleased 
to  support  me,  nothing  will  be  too  heavy  for 
me.  Oh,  make  Thy  strength  perfect  in  my 
weakness.  Thou  who  delightest  in  mercy,  save 
me  for  Thy  mercy's  sake.  Thou  hast  said  Thou 
wilt  not  contend  for  ever,  neither  wilt  Thou  be 
always  wroth ;  for  the  spirit  should  fail  before 
Thee,  and  the  souls  which  Thou  hast  made. 
Oh,  turn  Thee  unto  me  and  have  mercy  upon 
me,  for  the  sake  of  Thy  well-beloved  Son  Jesus 
Christ. — Amen." 


Leave  God  to  order  all  thy  ways, 
And  hope  in  Him,  whate'er  betide ; 

Thou  It  find  Him  in  the  evil  days 
An  all-sufficient  strength  and  guide. 

Who  trusts  in  God's  unchanging  love, 

Builds  on  the  rock  that  nought  can  move. 


144  BE  NOT  AFBAIB. 

What  can  these  anxious  cares  avail, 
These  never-ceasing  moans  and  sighs  ? 

What  can  it  help  us  to  bewail 
Each  painful  moment  as  it  flies  ? 

Our  cross  and  trials  do  but  press 

The  heavier  for  our  bitterness. 

Only  your  restless  heart  keep  still, 
And  wait  in  cheerful  hope,  content 

To  take  whatever  His  gracious  will, 
His  all-discerning  love  hath  sent; 

Nor  doubt  our  inmost  wants  are  known 

To  Him  who  chose  us  for  His  own. 

He  knows  when  joyful  hours  are  best, 
He  sends  them  as  He  sees  it  meet, 

When  thou  hast  borne  its  fiery  test, 
And  now  art  freed  from  all  deceit, 

He  comes  to  thee  all  unaware, 

And  makes  thee  own  His  loving  care. 

Nor  in  the  heat  of  pain  and  strife, 

Think  God  hath  cast  thee  off  unheard ; 

Nor  that  the  man  whose  prosperous  life 
Thou  enviest,  is  of  Him  preferr'd  ; 

Time  passes  and  much  change  doth  bring, 

And  sets  a  bound  to  everything. 


BE  NOT  AFRAID.  145 

All  are  alike  before  His  face  ; 

'Tis  easy  to  our  God  most  high 
To  make  the  rich  man  poor  and  base, 

To  give  the  poor  man  wealth  and  joy. 
True  wonders  still  of  Him  are  wrought, 
Who  setteth  up  and  brings  to  nought. 

Sing,  pray,  and  swerve  not  from  His  ways, 
But  do  thine  own  part  faithfully; 

Trust  His  rich  promises  of  grace, 
So  shall  it  be  fulnll'd  in  thee ; 

God  never  yet  forsook  at  need 

The  soul  that  trusted  Him  indeed." 

Lyra  Germanica. 


"IT  IS  I;  BE  NOT  AFRAID/ 

"  It  is  I ;  be  not  afraid," 
Thus  our  loving  Saviour  said, 
When,  in  human  flesh  array'd, 
Winds  and  sea  His  voice  obey'd. 

"  It  is  I," — oh,  fear  not  ye, 
Face  the  tempest-troubled  sea ; 
Mine  the  power,  and  mine  the  will, 
My  love  eternal — "  Peace,  be  still ! " 


146  BE  NOT  AFRAID. 

"  It  is  I," — I  bid  thee  come ; 

Though  rough  the  way,  it  leadeth  home, 

My  hand  is  strong  to  bear  thee  out, 

0  faithless,  "  wherefore  dost  thou  doubt  ?" 

"  It  is  I," — when  deeply  feeling 
Your  need  of  Jesus'  perfect  healing, 
Already  hath  the  plague  been  stay'd, 
Oh,  "  fear  not,  neither  be  dismay'd  ! " 

"  It  is  I," — when  worn  by  pain, 
You  strive  to  frame  your  prayers  in  vain, 
Omniscient,  I  thy  ivishes  know, 
Omnipotent,  can  all  bestow. 

"  It  is  I," — though  doubts  prevail, 
And  though  secret  fears  assail, 
In  love  and  pity,  as  of  old, 

1  '11  keep  thee  safe  within  my  fold. 

"  It  is  I,' — the  Way,  the  Truth, 
The  Strength  of  age,  the  Guide  of  youth, 
The  sinner's  Friend,  my  loved  ones'  Shield, 
"  Look  unto  Me,  and  be  ye  heal'd  !  * 

J.  B. 


BE  NOT  AFRAID.  147 

When  ease  and  quiet  are  our  lot, 

Our  hearts  grow  hard  and  cold  ; 
Our  God  and  all  His  love  forgot, 

We  wander  from  His  fold ; 
But  when  His  tempests  sweep  our  sky, 

His  wrath  we  dare  not  brave ; 
We  stoop  beneath  the  blast,  and  cry, 

11  Arise,  our  God,  and  save  1" 

Lord,  grant  that  ever  in  my  breast 

Such  dread  of  sin  may  be, 
That  I  may  never  dream  of  rest 

Or  peace,  except  in  Thee ; 
That  'neath  the  calmest,  brightest  sky 

Thy  mercy  ever  gave, 
This  heart  may  dread  sin's  storm,  and  cry, 

"  Arise,  my  God,  and  save  ! " 

Parish  Musings. 


1  Petuk  i.  6. 
"  Though  now  for  a  season,  (if  need  be,)  ye  are  in  heaviness." 

Of  all  things,  the  most  difficult  is  to  realise 
truly  "the  need  be,"  for  our  own  personal  trials. 
We  see  it  readily  in  the  case  of  another,  al- 
though our  judgment  is  often  very  erroneous. 
We  will  quickly  discover  how  cold  and  indif- 
ferent he  had  become, — how  the  world  had  been 
gaming  the  mastery  over  him, — how  his  time 
and  talents  were  being  spent  far  too  much  in 
caring  for  things  seen  and  temporal.  But 
when  it  comes  to  our  own  turn, — when  we  are 
compelled,  as  it  were,  to  open  up  some  pages  in 
the  "  book  of  the  heart,"  and  find  there  many 
charges  against  us,  we  are  seldom  at  a  loss  to 
find  excuses.  "  True,  we  have  not  been  so 
diligent  as  we  used  to  be,  but  then,  how  many 
necessary  cares  have  taken  hold  upon  us  ;  true, 
we  have  been  less  fervent  in  prayer,  less 
frequently  in  our  closet,  but  we  have  been 
regular  in  attending  the  house  of  God,  we  have 
not  failed  in  the  external  duties  of  religion. 


152  IF  NEED  BE. 

And  then,  our  trials  are  so  much  heavier  than 
those  of  others,  who  are  careless,  indifferent, 
avowed  worldlings."  In  short,  we  inwardly 
think  that  our  lot  is  a  very  hard  one, — that  our 
cross  is  the  most  painful, — our  suffering  the 
most  agonising, — our  path  the  most  thorny. 
And  all  this  arises  from  the  fact,  that  we  have 
not  discovered  the  "  need  be." 

How  could  we  ?  At  the  best,  our  spiritual 
eyesight  is  weak  and  dim.  We  cannot  know 
the  real  state  of  our  souls,  or  see  them  as  He 
does,  whose  searching  scrutiny  detects  the 
slightest  symptom  of  disease.  We  fancy  all  is 
well  when  we  are  sick,  wounded,  ready  to  die. 
We  imagine  that  all  is  right  with  the  heart, 
when  faith  is  weak,  love  cold,  hope  almost 
obscured.  Only  gradually,  after  having  been 
long  in  the  school  of  trial,  do  we  begin  to  realise 
that  the  Physician  must  probe  the  wound  within 
us,  and  apply  severe  remedies,  and  cause  pain 
and  anguish,  in  order  to  cure  the  malady  which 
is  preying  upon  us, — only  after  we  have  passed 
through  the  trying  ordeal,  and  feel  that  the 
pulse  is  beating  more  regularly,  and  the  blood 
is  coursing  through  the  system  with  a  healthier 
flow, — only  then    can  we  rightly  comprehend 


IF  NEED  BE.  153 

our  former  weakness,  and  thank  God  that  in 
tender  love  He  cared  for  us,  not  hesitating  to 
inflict  pain,  not  withdrawing  His  hand,  not 
sparing  the  rod,  that  He  might  do  us  good  in 
the  end. 

Christian,  just  reflect  for  a  little  on  some  of 
the  "  needs  be"  for  affliction  and  trial.  Only 
a  few  can  we  here  discover  :  in  eternity  we  may 
hope  they  will  all  be  revealed  to  us,  but  now 
"  we  see  through  a  glass  darkly." 

"  If  need  be/'  affliction  will  be  sent  for  the 
purpose  of  bringing  us  to  realise  whether  our 
religion  be  genuine  or  not.  "  We  perhaps 
thought  ourselves  Christians,  and  that  we  were 
founded  on  the  Kock;  and  now  an  affliction 
comes,  and  we  shake  like  aspen  leaves.  Could 
this  be  if  we  were  really  standing  on  the  Kock  ? 
We  thought  fondly  that  God  was  the  chosen 
portion  of  our  souls,  and  that,  though  all  earthly 
joys  were  taken  from  us,  we  had  enough  when 
we  had  Him  ;  and  yet,  when  He  crosses  some 
desire  of  our  hearts,  or  removes  some  of  His 
own  gifts,  we  seem  as  if  we  had  lost  our  all,  and 
speedily  grow  sad  and  disconsolate ;  and  thus 
we  learn  the  fact,  that  our  comfort  did  not  be- 
fore, as  we  supposed,  flow  from  the  Eternal 


154  IF  NEED  BE. 

Fountain,  but  had  been  drawn  from  perishing 
cisterns;  and  therefore,  now  they  are  broken, 
we  die  of  thirst.  This  is  an  important  discovery 
to  us,  and  it  was  to  make  this  discovery  to  us 
that  God  sent  the  affliction." 

"  If  need  be/'  pain  and  suffering  will  be  our 
lot  until  we  both  discern  and  acknowledge  God's 
hand  in  the  visitation.  "We  are  very  backward 
to  do  this.  We  endeavour  to  account  for  our 
misfortunes,  losses,  and  troubles,  by  turning  our 
thoughts  to  second  causes.  Although,  when 
affliction  comes,  we  may  say  in  words,  "It  is 
the  work  of  God ; "  yet  we  do  not,  in  our  inmost 
hearts  realise  the  meaning  of  the  expression, — 
we  do  not  humbly  and  submissively  acknow- 
ledge, "  the  Lord  hath  done  it."  How  often  do 
we  hear  those  who  have  been  visited  by  sore 
calamity, — whose  comforts  and  enjoyments 
have  been  suddenly  interrupted, — passionately 
lamenting  over  their  misfortune,  and  bitterly 
complaining  that  such  has  been  their  unex- 
pected fate  1  Friends  are  removed,  riches  pass 
away,  health  rapidly  declines,  and  they  say, 
"  Had  we  only  taken  this  step  or  that,  had  we 
adopted  this  precaution  or  that,  it  would  not 
have  happened,  it  would  not  have  been  so  with 


IF  NEED  BE.  155 

us."  It  was  their  own  imprudence,  the  falsehood 
or  wickedness  of  others,  the  badness  of  the 
seasons,  the  unhealthy  state  of  the  atmosphere. 
Thus  they  "  labour  to  push  God  out  of  their 
concerns," — the  Sovereign  of  the  universe  is,  as 
it  were,  dethroned, — and  they  must  be  brought 
to  feel,  that  "  affliction  cometh  not  forth  of  the 
dust,  neither  doth  trouble  spring  out  of  the 
ground,"  but  that  God  is  the  Author  of  our 
troubles, — that  He  owns  Himself  as  such,  and 
would  have  His  children  to  discern  His  pre- 
sence,— trace  the  work  of  His  hand, — feel  that 
He  is  chastising  them,  and  that  He  means  to  do 
them  good  thereby. 

And,  reader,  it  is  when  we  come  to  know  and 
realise  this,  that  we  begin  to  reap  the  benefit  of 
affliction.  So  long  as  we  attribute  it  only  to 
second  causes,  there  will  be  no  submission,  no 
gratitude,  no  praise.  It  is  only  when  we  see 
that  a  Father  s  hand  has  been  laid  upon  us, — 
when  we  realise  that  He  is  withdrawing  our 
comforts,  blighting  our  hopes,  and  filling  our 
hearts  with  grief,  —that  it  is  He  that  causes  the 
piercing  thorns  to  spring  up  around  our  path, — 
He  that  commissions  the  fierce  disease  to  com- 
mit its  fearful  ravages,  and  bids  the  gloomy 


156  IF  NEED  BE. 

grave  open  to  receive  our  much-loved  friends ; 
— it  is  only  then,  that  the  soul  is  led  to  solemn 
thought,  the  rising  murmur  is  suppressed,  and 
in  meek  submission  we  are  brought  to  say,  "  It 
is  the  Lord,  let  Him  do  as  seemeth  Him  good." 
"  I  was  dumb,"  said  David,  "  I  opened  not  my 
mouth,  because  Thou  didst  it."  "  The  Lord 
gave,"  is  the  submissive  language  of  Job,  "  and 
the  Lord  hath  taken  away :  blessed  be  the  name 
of  the  Lord." 

"  If  need  be,"  sickness  and  trial  will  be  sent 
again  and  again,  until  we  learn  to  sit  loose  to 
the  world,  and  have  our  chief  joy  in  God.  How 
often  have  we  risen  from  a  sick  bed  and  returned 
to  our  folly  1  how  often  have  we  had  trial,  and 
very  soon  become  as  giddy  and  thoughtless  as 
ever  1  But  if  we  are  God's  children,  He  will 
not  suffer  it  so  to  be.  He  will  again  mingle  the 
cup  for  us  to  drink,  again  withdraw  some  bless- 
ing, and  lead  our  thoughts  heavenward,  deepen 
our  repentance,  bring  us  to  humility  at  His 
footstool.  Oh,  how  thankful  should  we  be  that 
God  will  not  suffer  us  to  injure  ourselves ! — 
that  He  will  send  pain,  sickness,  weariness,  dis- 
tress, languor,  agony  of  mind  and  body,  to  rouse 
us  from  our  lethargy  and  carelessness — to  show 


IF  NEED  BE.  157 

us  that  the  life  we  have  been  wasting  is  an 
earnest  thing, — that  our  souls  are  precious  in 
His  sight, — and  that  He  desires  our  eternal 
well-being  and  salvation ! 

And,  finally,  (as  including  many  other  gra- 
cious designs,)  "  if  need  be,"  affliction  and  trial 
will  be  sent  to  increase  our  longings  after  an 
absent  Saviour,  to  intensify  our  desires  for 
heavenly  bliss,  and  to  bring  us  to  cherish  the 
feeling  of  the  apostle,  "  I  have  a  desire  to  depart 
and  to  be  with  Christ,  which  is  far  better." 
Willing  to  remain  so  long  as  God  needs  our 
service  here,  we  should  yet  long  to  join  the 
"  general  assembly  and  church  of  the  first-born, 
which  are  written  in  heaven."  Patient  and 
submissive  under  the  hand  of  God,  we  may, 
nevertheless,  ardently  long  for  the  hour  when 
we  shall  be  freed  from  the  body  of  sin  and  death. 
"  For  we  know,"  saith  the  apostle,  "  that  if  our 
earthly  house  of  this  tabernacle  were  dissolved, 
we  have  a  building  of  God,  an  house  not  made 
with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens.  For  in  this 
we  groan,  earnestly  desiring  to  be  clothed  upon 
with  our  house  which  is  from  heaven :  If  so  be 
that  being  clothed  we  shall  not  be  found  naked. 
For  we  that  are  in  this  tabernacle  do  groan, 


158  IF  NEED  BE. 

being  burdened :  not  for  that  we  would  be  un- 
clothed, but  clothed  upon,  that  mortality  might 
be  swallowed  up  of  life.  Now  he  that  hath 
wrought  us  for  the  self-same  thing  is  God,  who 
also  hath  given  unto  us  the  earnest  of  the  Spirit. 
Therefore  we  are  always  confident,  knowing 
that,  whilst  we  are  at  home  in  the  body,  we  are 
absent  from  the  Lord :  (For  we  walk  by  faith, 
not  by  sight:)  We  are  confident,  I  say,  and 
willing  rather  to  be  absent  from  the  body,  and 
to  be  present  with  the  Lord." 

"  Here  we  groan,  being  burdened."  Yes,  it 
is  a  burden, — a  trial-— even  though  a  sanctified 
one — yet  a  trial  still — to  be  subject  to  the  varied 
afflictions,  which  body,  soul,  and  spirit  endure 
under  the  chastening  hand  of  God, — bodily 
pains,  and  bitter  bereavements,  and  sad  sepa- 
rations, and  the  severing  in  twain  of  dearest 
bonds,  and  the  breaking  up  of  past  remem- 
brances, and  the  blight  of  disappointment,  and 
the  stripping  away  of  earthly  comforts,  and  the 
snapping  asunder  of  earthly  supports.  "No 
chastening  for  the  present  is  joyous,  but  griev- 
ous/' Therefore  the  believer  looks  forward  to 
that  time  when  he  shall  iiave  done  with  sin  and 
sorrow, — when  neither  weakness,  nor  weariness, 


IF  NEED  BE.  159 

nor  wasting  anxieties,  nor  the  anguish  of  separa- 
tions, nor  clouds  of  sadness,  nor  the  tremblings 
of  doubt, — not  any,  nor  all  of  these  shall  again 
break  his  repose,  or  interrupt  the  current  of  his 
heavenly  joy.  He  knows  that  in  the  home  of 
the  redeemed — whither  he  is  going — his  bitterest 
anguish  will  be  soothed,  his  tears  for  ever  wiped 
away, — that  there  the  mournful  circumstances 
of  the  present  life  will  all  be  forgotten,  being 
merged  in  the  glories  of  the  eternal  world, — 
that  his  losses  will  be  far  more  than  compensated 
— his  patient  endurance  of  sanctified  affliction 
abundantly  rewarded. 

And,  therefore,  in  the  midst  of  his  present 
trials  and  distresses,  he  "  walks  by  faith,  not  by 
sight," — his  thoughts  stretch  onward,  and  pene- 
trate the  future, — he  dwells  upon  the  glorious 
prospect  revealed  to  him  in  Scripture,  of  that 
everlasting  home  where  no  sin  will  ever  interfere 
with  his  holiness,  no  trouble  disturb  his  tran- 
quillity,— where  no  sorrow  will  ever  sadden  his 
spirit,  no  darkness  ever  cloud  his  sky,  and  thus 
it  is  that,  when  oppressed  with  cares,  or  suffer- 
ing under  afflictions,  he  binds  yet  more  closely 
to  his  heart  the  precious  promises  of  God, — his 
soul  is  inspired  with  a  deeper  devotion,  and  a 


160  IF  NEED  BE. 

holier  steadfastness,  and  a  more  earnest  per- 
severance, by  the  contemplation  of  the  "  glory 
yet  to  be  revealed/'  Every  fresh  trial  quickens 
the  glance  of  the  eagle  eye, — every  new  affliction 
adds  a  bolder  impulse  to  the  soarings  of  hope ; — 
the  coming  glory  and  the  promised  crown, — 
the  heavenly  mansions,  and  the  immediate  pre- 
sence of  Christ; — all  these  impart  comfort  to 
him  when  dejected, — revive  his  fainting  heart, 
and  nerve  him  with  fresh  strength  when  weak 
and  weary. 

Take  courage,  then,  sons  and  daughters  of 
tribulation.  "  Let  not  your  heart  be  troubled/' 
Remember  the  assurance  of  your  Saviour,  "  I 
go  to  prepare  a  place  for  you.  And  if  I  go  and 
prepare  a  place  for  you,  I  will  come  again,  and 
receive  you  unto  myself ;  that  where  I  am,  there 
ye  may  be  also."  If  united  to  Jesus  by  a  living 
faith, — if  you  have  made  Him  your  life,  your 
hope,  your  strength,  your  being's  end  and  aim, — 
your  sole  hope,  your  sole  strength,  your  main 
end  and  aim, — then,  be  assured,  He  will  lead 
you  safely  on  through  trial,  and  trouble,  and 
sorrow.  He  will  prove  to  you,  His  readiness 
to  help, — His  delight  in  helping, — His  grace  and 
goodness, — His  love  and  tenderness.     "  He  will 


IF  NEED  BE.  161 

hold  you  by  your  right  hand,  saying  unto  you, 
Fear  not."  In  every  fresh  trial  you  will  realise 
more  of  His  sympathy, — in  every  time  of  trouble 
you  will  experience  more  of  His  love, — in  every 
hour  of  danger  you  will  see  more  of  His  power, 
— and,  at  length,  in  the  day  of  your  utmost 
weakness  and  sorest  need,  you  will  know  the 
fulness  and  perfection  of  His  strength.  Be 
resting  on  Him  for  all  your  comfort,  hope,  help, 
and  deliverance.  Ask  of  Him  in  every  fresh 
trial  to  impart  more  grace,  and  under  every 
circumstance  of  the  trial  say,  "  Lord,  what 
wouldst  Thou  have  me  to  do?"  Beg  of  Him 
increasing  submission  and  thankfulness  of  spirit, 
— above  all,  a  growing  conformity  to  Himself, 
both  in  doing  and  suffering.  Pray  that  He 
may  be  pleased  to  lighten  your  affliction,  and 
alleviate  your  sorrow;  but  wait  patiently  His 
pleasure,  and  seek  not  to  escape  your  burden, 
pain,  or  trouble,  till  He  sees  meet. 

Be  assured,  if  you  are  of  Christ's  flock,  all 
shall  be  well  with  you.  You  will  soon  be 
"  delivered  from  the  burden  of  the  flesh,"  and 
be  in  "joy  and  felicity"  for  ever.  You  will 
"  come  to  Zion  with  songs,  and  everlasting  joy 
and  gladness,  and  sorrow  and  sighing  shall  flee 


162  IF  NEED  BE. 

away/'  You  will  enter  a  land  where  there  is 
no  pain,  no  suffering ;  where  the  days  of  mourn- 
ing shall  be  ended,  and  God  shall  wipe  away 
all  tears  from  all  eyes.  Yet  a  little  more  toil, 
a  little  more  labour,  a  little  more  endurance, 
and  your  probation  state  will  finish,  and  that 
Saviour,  whom  you  are  now  delighting  to  serve, 
"  will  come  again,  and  receive  you  unto  Him- 
self, that  where  He  is,  there  you  may  be  also.', 

"  What  though  our  bark  a  drearv  course  pursue, 
We  have  the  haven  of  our  rest  in  view ; 
How  grateful  soon  the  calm  which  ne'er  shall 

cease ! 
How  bright  the  visions  of  eternal  peace  ! " 

Almighty  and  most  merciful  Father,  our  only 
refuge  and  strength,  who,  though  unseen  by 
our  bodily  eyes,  art  continually  about  our  bed 
and  about  our  path,  and  seest  all  our  ways, — 
who  art  the  Author  of  all  the  various  comforts 
which  we  here  enjoy,  and  to  whom  we  look  for 
all  future  blessing, — I  desire  humbly  to  bow 
down  before  Thee. 

Oh,  give  me  to  feel  the  necessity  for  trial, 
distress,  and  suffering.  Let  me  not  repine 
under  them.     Help  me  to  realise  Thy  mercy  in 


IF  NEED  BE.  163 

thus  caring  for  me, — in  not  suffering  me  to 
perish  utterly, — in  not  casting  me  off  for  ever 
from  Thy  fatherly  care,  as  Thou  mightest  justly 
have  done.  Oh,  fill  me  with  a  lively  sense  of 
Thy  goodness,  forbearance,  and  long-suffering. 
Pardon,  0  God,  my  sinfulness,  my  hardness 
of  heart,  my  coldness,  my  waywardness.  Oh, 
apply  by  Thy  Spirit  the  blood  of  sprinkling. 
Unite  me  more  closely  to  my  dear  Saviour. 
Be  pleased,  0  Lord,  to  guide,  help,  and  deliver 
me.  I  am  very  weak,  and  unable  to  keep  my- 
self. I  am  prone  to  murmur,  repine,  and  forget 
my  high  calling ;  but  I  implore  the  aid  of  Thy 
Holy  Spirit  to  uphold,  strengthen,  and  sanctify 
me.  And,  0  Lord  God,  if  at  any  time  sin  pre- 
vail against  me,  bring  me  back  to  Jesus  my 
Advocate  with  Thee,  that  through  repentance 
and  faith  in  Him  I  may  be  forgiven  and  re- 
stored. Keep  me,  0  God,  by  Thy  mighty 
ower,  through  faith  unto  salvation,  for  the  sake 
of  Him  who  hath  loved  me,  and  who  knoweth 
all  my  infirmities,  even  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord 
— Amen. 


164  IF  NEED  BE. 

Life  is  before  you !  from  the  fated  road 
Ye  cannot  turn ;  then  take  ye  up  the  load. 
Not  yours  to  tread  or  leave  the  unknown  way ; 
Ye  must  go  o'er  it,  meet  ye  what  ye  may. 
What  though  the  brightness  wane,  the  pleasures 

fade, 
The  glory  dim.     Oh,  not  of  these  is  made 
The  awful  life  that  to  your  trust  is  given  1 
Children  of  God  !  inheritors  of  heaven ! 
Mourn  not  the  perishing  of  each  fair  toy ; 
Ye  were  ordain  d  to  do,  and  not  t'  enjoy  ; 
Fail  not  for  sorrow,  falter  not  for  sin ; 
But  onwards,  upwards,  till  the  goal  you  win. 
God  guard  you  I  and  God  guide  you  on  your 

way, 
Young  warrior  pilgrims,  who  set  forth  to-day  1 

Mrs  Butler. 


Mourn,  0  rejoicing  heart  1 

The  hours  are  flying ; 
Each  one  some  treasure  takes, 
Each  one  some  blossom  breaks, 
And  leaves  it  dying. 


IF  NEED  BE.  165 

The  chill  dark  night  draws  near, 
Thy  sun  will  soon  depart. 

And  leave  thee  sighing ; 
Then  mourn,  rejoicing  heart ! 

The  hours  are  flying. 

Kejoice,  0  grieving  heart ! 

The  hours  fly  past ; 
With  each  some  sorrow  dies, 
With  each  some  shadow  flies, 

Until  at  last 
The  red  dawn  in  the  east 
Bids  weary  night  depart, 

And  pain  is  past. 
Eejoice,  then,  grieving  heart ! 

The  hours  fly  past. 

Miss  Pboctob. 


XL 


Job  ix.  28. 

lt  I  am  afraid  of  all  my  sorrows." 

When  trial  after  trial  comes  upon  us,  or  when 
our  prayers  seem  unanswered,  and  our  days  and 
nights  of  sickness  are  multiplied,  we  are  prone 
not  merely  to  get  discouraged,  but  to  be  ever 
conjuring  up  phantoms  of  coming  evil.  We  do 
not  look  out  for  a  bright  light.  We  sit  down 
gloomily  amid  the  darkness,  terrified  to  move, 
— expecting  some  fresh  sorrow, — dwelling  only 
on  some  new  imaginary  grief,  which  we  fancy  is 
impending  over  us.  We  will  not  even  admit 
the  entrance  of  hope — our  hearts  are  shut 
against  it ;  and  instead  of  drawing  nearer  and 
nearer  to  God,  the  longer  He  chastens  us,  we 
give  ourselves  up  to  sinful  despondency,  and 
stand  at  a  distance  from  Him.  We  will  not 
perhaps  acknowledge  to  our  own  hearts,  far  less 
to  any  earthly  friend,  but  our  feelings  are  some- 
what of  this  nature — "  Why  should  /  hope  ?  I 
have  met  with  nothing  save  disappointment, — 
why  should  I  expect  relief?   my  burden  con- 


170  HEAVIER  SOMROWS. 

tinues  to  press  upon  me  with  increasing  weight, 
— why  should  I  still  entreat  an  answer  to  my 
prayers?  they  have  all  been  rejected,  and  re- 
main unheard."  Ah,  if  we  have  ever  cherished 
such  sentiments  as  these,  if  they  are  even  now 
taking  possession  of  us,  let  us  beware !  This 
may  be  the  very  reason  why  God  withdraws  not 
His  chastening  hand, — the  very  reason  why  His 
comforts  have  not  delighted  our  souls, — the  very 
reason  why  we  are  left  to  suffer,  to  agonise,  to 
fear,  to  despair.  Let  us  reflect  what  God's 
purpose  is ;  it  is  to  draw  us  to  Him,  not  to  drive 
us  away  from  Him.  He  would  have  us  come 
to  Him  in  sorrow,  and  not  leave  Him  until  we 
have  won  our  suit.  He  would  have  us  cling  to 
the  assurance  of  His  love,  even  though  it  bear 
the  semblance  of  the  flame-breath  of  the  fur- 
nace. He  would  have  us  believe  that  He  hears 
us,  even  though  He  delay  long  to  answer,  and 
seem  to  disregard  our  petition. 

This  is  His  design ;  but  if  we  frustrate  it,  if 
we  refuse  to  learn  the  lesson  He  desires  to  teach 
us,  then  He  will  send  "  heavier  sorrows "  to 
effect  His  purpose.  Nothing  but  our  wliole 
hearts,  our  entire  confidence,  our  complete  sub- 
mission, our  willing  acquiescence  in  all  that  He 


HE  A  VIER  SORROWS.  171 

appoints,  will  satisfy  Him.  He  will  not  accept 
half-confidence,  half-reliance,  half-desires,  but 
He  will  continue  to  deal  with  us.  He  will  send 
messenger  after  messenger,  trial  upon  trial,  and 
sorrow  upon  sorrow,  until  we  have  been  brought 
low, — brought  in  penitence  to  His  footstool, — 
brought,  it  may  be,  faint,  bleeding,  wounded,  to 
say,  in  the  language  of  heartfelt  submission, 
"  Lord,  I  am  Thine,  do  with  me  as  Thou  pleas- 
est ;  I  desire  to  yield  myself  entirely  to  Thee, 
to  do  or  suffer,  according  to  Thy  pleasure." 
Oh  blessed  result  of  continued  trial !  when  thus 
the  believer  comes  to  will  what  God  wills, — to 
choose  what  God  chooses, — to  have  this  much 
of  the  mind  that  was  in  Christ. 

But  the  ordeal  which  is  passed  through  before 
all  this  is  accomplished  is  painful  and  trying. 
We  are  sure,  from  the  declaration  of  Holy  Scrip- 
ture, that  "  whom  the  Lord  loveth  He  chasten- 
eth,"  and  that  in  some  way  or  other,  every  one 
who  believes  in  Christ  Jesus  will  be  brought  to 
submission,  trust,  acquiescence  in  the  will  of 
God.  But  we  know  not  the  various  steps  in 
this  process ;  we  know  not  the  path  of  "  tribu- 
lation "  through  which  multitudes  have  gone  to 
glory, — the  months  and  years  thejjirst  spent  in 


172  HE  A  VIER  SORRO  WS. 

sadness,  pain,  and  suffering,  ere  they  could  say, 
"  Thy  will  be  done/' — the  hard,  stern,  and  in- 
flexible discipline  they  had  to  undergo  ere  they 
realised  true,  hearty  submission, — the  pangs  and 
sorrows  they  brought  upon  themselves  ere  they 
were  permitted  to  taste  the  "joys  of  His  salva- 
tion." 

But,  knowing  that  trial  is  meant  to  draw  us 
to  God, — that  fretfulness  and  murmuring,  or  a 
gloomy  foreboding  of  coming  ills,  tend  to  frus- 
trate His  gracious  purpose, — and  that  the  sooner 
we  yield  ourselves  up  to  Him,  in  heart  and  soul, 
in  will,  affection,  and  desire,  the  sooner  will  we 
be  able  to  "  rejoice  in  Him ;" — knowing  this, 
oh,  let  it  be  our  earnest  prayer  that  now,  even 
now,  we  may  receive  grace  to  say,  "  Not  as  I 
will,  but  as  Thou  wilt,"  and  yield  ourselves 
meekly,  as  the  redeemed  of  Christ,  to  the  hand 
of  God,  as  of  a  loving  Father. 

It  may  be  He  will  accept  our  submission  and 
quiet  waiting  upon  Him,  and  release  us  from  the 
rough  discipline  of  still  sharper  affliction.  Not 
that  we  should  desire  to  be  freed  from  it  merely 
because  it  is  painful,  but  because  we  have  learned 
God's  lesson,  and,  through  the  power  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  been  enabled  to  enter  a  path  in  which 


HE  A  VIEB  SOBBO  W8%  173 

these  "  heavier  sorrows "  are  no  longer  neces- 
sary. 

Christian,  what  is  thy  present  frame  of  mind  ? 
Hast  thou  been  brought  to  submission,  or  art 
thou  sitting  sad  and  disconsolate,  brooding 
over  thy  troubles,  vexed  with  dark  forebodings, 
and  refusing  to  be  comforted?  Oh,  it  is  not 
wise  to  act  thus  1  Thou  art  displeasing  thy 
Father, — thou  art  wounding  thy  Saviour, — thou 
art  grieving  the  Holy  Spirit.  I  know  thou 
wilt  not  be  utterly  forsaken.  I  know  that, 
although  thy  murmurings  and  despondency 
might  well  provoke  God  to  cast  thee  off  for 
ever,  He  will  still  have  mercy  upon  thee.  He 
will  follow  thee  in  thy  wanderings  away  from 
Him.  He  will  call  upon  thee  to  return.  But, 
ah  !  think  what  thou  art  bringing  upon  thyself 
by  indulging  in  a  fretful,  morose,  and  gloomy 
temper  !  Thou  art  rendering  necessary  another 
and  another  stroke  of  affliction — bringing  on 
thyself  more  bitter  griefs  and  "  heavier  sorrows." 
Thou  art  provoking  thy  Father  to  hide  His  face 
still  from  thee,  and  withhold  His  comforts,  and 
keep  thee  in  the  furnace.  Thou  thinkest  that 
thy  present  sorrow  is  as  heavy  as  it  can  be, — 
that  the  darkness  could  not  be  more  appalling 


174  HE  A  VIEB  SORBO  WS. 

and  dreadful  than  it  is.  Ah,  foolish  one  !  what 
is  thy  sorrow  ?  Perhaps  thou  art  the  victim  of 
disease, — thy  body  is  often  racked  with  pain, — 
thy  nights  are  spent  in  wakefulness,  and  thy 
days  in  sadness. 

But,  has  God  no  "  heavier  sorrow  ?"  Look 
at  thy  comforts  !  Kind  friends  to  sympathise 
with  thee,  and  to  relieve  thy  wants, — the  prayers 
of  the  faithful,  which  are  continually  rising  up 
in  behalf  of  "  all  who  are  in  affliction  or  trouble 
of  any  kind," — the  promises  of  God,  which  are 
"  yea  and  amen  in  Christ  Jesus."  Think,  too, 
of  thy  past  blessings, — days,  months,  and  years 
of  health, — prosperity  and  peace  attending  thy 
steps, — the  sunshine  gladdening  thee, — no  storm 
threatening  thee.  And  wilt  thou  now  give  way 
to  murmuring  and  despondency,  because  thy 
God  has  seen  meet  to  send  trial  ?  He  might 
strip  you  of  every  blessing,  even  as  He  has  re- 
moved one.  He  might  give  you  no  rest  from 
pain.  He  might  visit  you  with  pinching  want 
as  well  as  painful  sickness.  He  might  with  His 
arrow  strike  down  every  loved  one  whose  affec- 
tion is  now  so  precious  to  you ;  and,  worse  than 
all,  He  might  "  leave  you  alone."  Believe  it, 
nothing  is  gained  by  struggling,  by  gloomy 


HEAVIER  SORROWS.  175 

forebodings  of  evil,  or  by  impatience  under  the 
trial  sent  by  God.  Dost  thou  wish  God  to  care 
for  thee  ?  dost  thou  desire  to  be  His  child,  to 
place  thy  soul  in  His  keeping  ?  Then  leave  to 
Him  everything, — to  send  joy  or  sorrow,  pain  or 
pleasure,  prosperity  or  adversity,  health  or  sick- 
ness. Disturb  not  thyself  about  coming  evils. 
The  future,  if  thou  art  only  willing  to  submit  to 
God,  can  but  bring  thee  good;  it  may  appear 
evil,  but  "  He  bringeth  good  out  of  evil." 

Instead  of  indulging  in  gloomy  forebodings, 
— instead  of  thus  tempting  God  to  inflict  "  hea- 
vier sorrows," — instead  of  barring  with  thine 
own  hand  the  entrance  of  peace,  comfort,  sub- 
mission, hope,  by  fancying  that  now  there  is  no 
joy  for  thee,  no  happiness  in  life,  no  blessing  in 
the  future,  no  termination  to  pain — nothing  but 
sorrow  and  grief  and  trouble, — turn  away  from 
all  these  things,  bid  them  farewell  for  ever,  and 
take  a  pilgrimage  in  thought  to  Gethsemane 
and  Calvary.  Gaze  upon  Him  "who  left  us  an 
example  that  we  should  follow  His  steps."  He 
knows  all  the  sorrows  that  await  Him, — the 
shame,  the  suffering,  the  anguish,  —  but  He 
takes  the  bitter  cup,  and,  with  His  heart  set  on 
the  salvation  of  His  people — His  heart  set  on 


176  HE  A  FIFE  SOBBO  WS. 

thee — the  blessed  Saviour  drains  it  to  the  very 
dregs.  See  Him  on  Calvary — unpitied  by  the 
crowd — deserted  by  His  disciples — forsaken  by 
His  Father — the  Lamb  led  to  the  slaughter, — - 
and  all  for  thee  !  Oh,  surely  such  a  contempla- 
tion should  lead  thee  to  cry,  "  My  Saviour-God, 
let  me  be  dumb  like  Thee, — let  me  never  open 
my  mouth  in  complaining, — let  me  entrust  my 
future  to  Thee  and  Thee  alone, — let  me  enter 
into  fellowship  with  Thee  in  suffering,  and  count 
it  all  joy  that  I  am  permitted  to  follow  Thee  in 
the  path  of  tribulation,  in  the  humble,  obedient, 
cheerful  endurance  of  trial,  and  the  giving  up  of 
my  will  to  my  Father's." 

Oh,  if  thus  you  bow  your  soul  before  the 
cross,  comfort  will  flow  in  upon  you,  tranquillity 
will  take  the  place  of  fear,  and  forebodings  of 
evil  will  be  exchanged  for  childlike  submission. 
A  hand  will  "  sustain  you  under  every  burden, 
so  that,  smiling  at  yesterday's  fears,  you  shall 
say,  '  This  is  easy,  this  is  light ; '  every  *  lion 
in  the  way,'  as  you  come  upon  it,  shall  be  seen 
chained."  And  whether  your  trial  be  removed 
or  not,  it  will  be  sanctified  in  your  growing  con- 
formity to  the  image  and  mind  of  Christ, — in 
your  progressive  advancement  in  holiness, — in 


BE  A  VIER  SORRO  WS.  177 

your  meetness  for  the  inheritance  of  the  saints 
in  light. 

Hear  the  language  of  one  who  underwent  a 
painful  discipline  for  many  years,  and  who  had 
learned  to  take  everything  cheerfully  from  her 
Fathers  hand  : — "  I  want,"  she  says,  " to  have 
no  will  of  my  own ;  I  want  to  have  all  my 
wishes  and  inclinations  lost  in  the  will  of  God, 
so  that,  if  I  see  His  will  apparent  in  anything, 
I  may  with  pleasure  do  or  suffer  that  thing, — 
yes,  do  or  suffer  it,  as  if  it  were  the  very  thing  I 
liked  best,  because  it  is  the  will  of  God."  And 
again  it  is  recorded  of  another  afflicted  believer: 
— "  For  thirty-six  years  the  victim  of  incurable 
maladies,  often  undergoing  excruciating  agony, 
sometimes  for  a  long  period  blind,  few  have  ex- 
perienced the  exquisite  enjoyments  of  which  her 
shattered  tenement  was  the  habitual  abode  ;  as 
she  said  to  a  friend,  '  My  nights  are  very  plea- 
sant in  general.  I  feel  like  David,  when  he 
said,  "  I  wait  for  the  Lord ;  my  soul  doth  wait, 
and  in  His  word  do  I  hope ; "  and  while  I  am 
enabled  to  contemplate  the  wonders  of  redeem- 
ing grace  and  love,  the  hours  pass  swiftly  on. 
and  the  morn  appears  even  before  I  am  aware. 
I  experience  so  much  of  the  Saviour's  love  in 


178  HE  A  VIER  SORRO  WS. 

supporting  me  under  pain,  that  I  cannot  fear 
its  increase.  ...  I  think  that  one  end  to  be 
answered  in  my  long  affliction  is,  encouragement 
for  others  to  trust  in  Him/  " 

Header,  pray  that  such  a  spirit  may  be  im- 
parted to  you, — that  ever  as  you  move  onward 
in  life's  journey,  you  "may  cast  all  your  care  on 
Him  who  careth  for  you,"  assured  that  He  will 
bring  you  safely  home.  Strive  to  follow  the 
example  of  one  who  thus  writes  of  himself : — 
"  For  a  long  time  I  felt  myself  to  be  a  lost 
sheep,  not  knowing  on  whom  to  rely  ;  and  now, 
with  the  deepest  consciousness  that  I  have  at 
last  attained  rest,  I  exclaim,  '  The  Lord  is  my 
shepherd  ! '  What  is  there  that  can  harm  me  ? 
I  have  reached  the  harbour,  and  storms  can  no 
more  drive  my  little  vessel  afloat  upon  the  wide 
sea.  And  as  I  look  forward  into  the  future, 
I  can  exclaim  with  David,  '  I  shall  not  want ! 
Goodness  and  mercy  shall  follow  me  all  the  days 
of  my  life,  and  I  will  dwell  in  the  house  of  the 
Lord  for  ever/  " 

0  Father  of  mercies,  and  God  of  all  comfort, 
who  dost  not  willingly  afflict  the  children  of 
men,  but  dost  rebuke  and  chasten  those  whom 


HE  A  VIEB  SOBBO  WS.  179 

Thou  lovest,  look  down  upon  me  Thine  un- 
worthy servant,  and  have  mercy  upon  me,  for 
Christ's  sake.  Oh,  grant  me  grace  to  bear 
with  patience  whatever  Thou  art  pleased  to 
send  !  Preserve  me  from  all  murmuring,  fret- 
fulness,  and  impatience,  and  enable  me  without 
doubting  to  accept  all  things  as  coming  from 
Thee.  Let  my  soul  be  supported  by  faith, 
hope,  and  love,  under  all  the  sufferings  I  may 
yet  endure.  Teach  me  to  remember  that  all 
sickness,  pain,  and  grief,  are  the  fruit  of  sin. 
Whatever  offences  I  have  committed  against 
Thee,  oh,  do  Thou  mercifully  forgive  me,  and 
make  me  heartily  sorry  for  them  ! 

Lord,  grant  that  this  affliction  may  be  sanc- 
tified to  my  spiritual  and  eternal  good.  Bless 
the  means  that  are  used,  and  make  them 
effectual,  if  it  be  Thy  good  pleasure,  for  restor- 
ing me  to  health,  that  I  may  again  praise  Thee 
in  the  assembly  of  Thy  people. 

I  acknowledge  it  to  be  of  Thy  bounty  alone 
that  I  have  my  being,  and  I  adore  Thy  mercy 
and  long-suffering  for  preserving  me  thus  long 
in  the  land  of  the  living.  My  many  days  and 
years  of  health  and  comfort  have  been  Thy  gift, 
and  my  deliverance  out  of  the  troubles  and 


180  HE  A  VIER  SORRO  WS. 

dangers  wherewith  I  have  at  any  time  been 
visited,  are  owing  to  Thee  alone.  Grant  me,  0 
Lord,  I  beseech  Thee,  a  due  sense  of  my  entire 
dependence  upon  Thee.  Inspire  me  with  that 
true  and  heavenly  wisdom  which  may  help  me 
to  discern  aright  the  reasons,  and  enable  me  to 
answer  the  ends,  of  all  Thy  dealings  with  me, 
that  in  the  dispensation  of  Thy  providence  I 
may  submit  myself  entirely  to  Thy  good  plea- 
sure, and  glorify  God  in  the  day  of  visitation. 
Do  with  me  what  is  good  in  Thy  sight.  Let 
patience  have  her  perfect  work.  If  this  sick- 
ness be  unto  death,  oh,  prepare  me  for  it,  that  I 
may  depart  only  to  be  with  Thee  !  If  it  be 
Thy  will  that  I  recover,  may  I  rise  from  a  sick- 
bed strong  through  Thy  grace  to  walk  far  more 
closely  with  my  God  than  ever  I  have  yet  done 
to  the  end  of  my  life.  I  offer  up  every  prayer 
through  the  merits  and  intercession  of  my  gra- 
cious Kedeemer. — Amen. 


CHILDLIKE  FAITH. 

Help  me  with  childlike  faith,  0  Lord, 
Simply  to  take  Thee  at  Thy  word  ; 


HE  A  VIER  SORRO  WS.  181 

What  Thou  dost  speak,  that  I  would  hear  ; 
What  Thou  condemnest,  I  would  fear ; 
What  Thou  dost  give  me,  I  would  take 
With  thankfulness,  for  Jesus'  sake. 

Help  rne  with  childlike  heart  to  love 
My  heavenly  Father,  God  above  ; 
And  with  a  childlike  wonder  trace, 
In  all  things  Thou  hast  made,  a  grace 
And  loveliness  and  tender  care, 
Thy  love's  true  tokens  everywhere. 

Help  me  to  cling  with  childlike  trust 

To  Thy  strong  arm ;  and  as  the  gust 

Makes  the  lithe  tendrils  of  the  vine 

Closer  and  yet  more  closely  twine, 

So  let  Thy  child's  poor  faith  be  strengthen'd, 

By  the  hard  day  of  trial  lengthen'd. 

Help  me  with  childlike  hope  to  bound 
Far  on  before  the  present's  round ; 
Gazing  with  simple  childlike  eyes 
On  the  bright  fields  of  paradise  ; 
And  with  true-hearted  faith  to  live 
In  the  blest  hope  the  Scriptures  give. 

J.  E.  B. 


182  HEAVIER  SORROWS. 


ISAIAH  XXXVIII.  14. 

I  am  oppress'd,  my  gracious  God  ! 
I  cry  beneath  Thy  chastening  rod ; 

Lord,  undertake  for  me  ! 

I  am  oppress'd ;  I  look  around 
And  see  Thy  judgment's  heavy  cloud  ; 
Oh,  undertake  for  me  ! 

I  am  oppress'd ;  I  weep  with  those 
Who  sorrow  'neath  a  Christian's  woes  ; 
Then  undertake  for  me  ! 

I  am  oppress'd  ;  I  bear  within 
A  heart  that 's  fill'd  with  shame  and  sin, 
Yet  undertake  for  me  ! 

I  am  oppress'd  ;  at  my  right  hand 
The  tempter  of  my  soul  cloth  stand ; 
Lord,  undertake  for  me  ! 

I  am  oppress'd  ;  behold  my  tears, 
Receive  my  prayer,  remove  my  fears ; 
Still  undertake  for  me  ! 

I  am  oppress'd;  0  Saviour,  say 
That  Thou  wilt  wipe  my  tears  away, 
And  undertake  for  me. 


HE  A  VIER  SORRO  WS.  183 

Saviour  !  though  my  rebellious  will 
Has  been  by  Thy  blest  power  renew'd, 

Yet  in  its  secret  workings  still 

How  much  remains  to  be  subdued  ! 

Oft  I  recall,  with  grief  and  shame, 
How  many  years  their  course  had  run, 

Ere  grace  my  murmuring  heart  overcame, 
Ere  I  could  say,  "  Thy  will  be  done." 

I  wish'd  a  flowery  path  to  tread, 

And  thought  'twould  safely  lead  to  heaven ; 
A  lonely  room,  a  suffering  bed, 

These  for  my  training-place  were  given. 

Long  I  resisted,  mourn'd,  complaind, 

Wish'd  any  other  lot  my  own  ; 
Thy  purpose,  Lord,  unchanged  remain'd ; 

What  wisdom  plann'd,  love  carried  on. 

Year  after  year  I  turn'd  away ; 

But  marr'd  was  every  scheme  I  plann'd  ; 
Still  the  same  lesson,  day  by  day, 

Was  placed  before  me  by  Thy  hand. 

At  length  Thy  patient,  wondrous  love, 
Unchanging,  tender,  pitying,  strong, 


1 84  HE  A  VIEB  SOBBO  WS. 

Avail' d  that  stony  heart  to  move, 
Which  had  rebell'd,  alas  !  so  long. 

Then  was  I  taught  by  Thee  to  say, 

"  Do  with  me  what  to  Thee  seems  best ; 

Give,  take  whate'er  Thou  wilt  away, 
Health,  comfort,  usefulness,  or  rest. 

11  Be  my  whole  life  in  suffering  spent ; 

But  let  me  be  in  suffering  Thine  ; 
Still,  0  my  Lord,  I  am  content, 

Thou  now  hast  made  Thy  pleasure  mine/' 

M.  E. 


XIL 


Pbalm  iv.  6. 
"  Lord,  lift  thcu  up  the  light  of  thy  countenance  upon  us." 

A  time  of  sickness  is  not  unfrequently  a  time 
of  gloom.  We  seem  to  be  surrounded  with 
thick  darkness.  As  in  the  natural  world,  when 
dense  clouds  come  between  us  and  the  light  of 
the  sun,  we  are  more  timid  and  fearful, — as  in 
threading  our  way  amid  precipices  and  pitfalls, 
we  tremble  to  find  the  shades  of  evening  gather- 
ing around  us ;  so  when  in  the  dangerous  pil- 
grimage of  life  we  find  ourselves  suddenly 
enwrapped  in  mist  and  gloom,  our  hearts  begin 
to  fail,  and  our  fears  are  awakened  at  every 
onward  step.  We  lose  for  a  while  the  comfort- 
ing sense  of  the  Divine  favour  and  presence  ;  we 
are  cast  down  by  the  pressure  of  painful  doubts 
and  apprehensions  ;  we  know  not  which  way  to 
turn  for  light,  and  the  language  of  our  troubled 
souls  often  is,  "  Has  God  forgotten  to  be  gra- 
cious ?"  Why  has  this  darkness  come  upon 
me  ?  why  am  I  left  so  comfortless  ?  why  is  the 
hand  withdrawn  which  used  to  guide  me? — 


188  SUNSHINE. 

why  the  comfort  withheld  which  used  to  gladden 
me  ? — why  the  peace  destroyed  which  used  to 
quiet  me  ? — why  do  these  fears,  and  doubts,  and 
apprehensions  so  gather  round  and  beset  my 
soul? 

Suffering  one,  have  you  not  experienced  this 
sadness  ? — have  you  not  agonised  under  the 
appalling  thought  that  your  God  and  Father 
had  forsaken  you — that  the  light  was  for  ever 
withdrawn  which  was  the  very  joy  of  your 
heart  ?  Lying  on  your  sick-bed,  have  you  not 
passed  many  a  weary,  anxious  hour  trying  to 
discover,  "  Why  is  it  so  with  me  ?  why  has  my 
health  been  taken  away  ?  why  has  trouble  been 
sent  upon  me  ?  wherefore,  0  my  God,  art  Thou 
angry  with  Thy  child  ?  and  wherefore  dost  Thou 
leave  me  to  grope  my  way  through  such  im- 
penetrable darkness  ?  " 

Oh !  this  is  the  ordeal  of  sickness, — this  is 
part  of  the  "  much  tribulation."  No  "  strange  " 
thing  has  happened  unto  thee.  Thy  Father 
has  not  left  thee,  neither  has  He  withdrawn  the 
sunshine  of  His  favour.  He  has  only  per- 
mitted clouds  to  intervene,  dark  and  mysterious 
providences  to  come  across  the  sky,  and  dangers 
to  threaten  you  for  a  season.     And  He  has  had 


SUNSHINE.  189 

the  wisest  reasons  for  so  doing.  He  knew  how 
prone  His  children  ever  are  to  forget  or  under- 
value their  most  precious  blessings, — how  the 
world,  and  our  daily  intercourse  with  it,  tend  to 
weaken  and  destroy  our  longings  for  heavenly 
communion  and  fellowship,-.— how  the  uninter- 
rupted continuance  of  blessing  and  comfort  and 
peace  is  not  conducive  to  the  growth  and  de- 
velopment of  the  Christian  character,  but  often- 
times lead  to  listlessness,  inactivity,  and  spi- 
ritual pride. 

Therefore  does  He  send  trial,  distress,  suffer- 
ing ;  therefore  does  He  remove  some  valued 
blessing  or  comfort;  therefore  does  He  com- 
mand the  clouds  to  gather  and  to  cast  their 
deepening  shadows  round  His  loved  one.  It  is 
not  that  He  delights  in  giving  pain,  or  in 
lessening  the  peace  and  comfort  of  His  children. 
Oh,  no  !  It  is  that  they  may  long  more  ardently 
for  that  of  which  they  have  been  for  a  season  de- 
prived ;  it  is  that  the  darkness  may  make  the 
sunshine  more  precious, — that  the  fears  and 
doubts  may  intensify  the  desire  for  peace  and 
security, — that  the  absence  of  spiritual  joy  may 
reawaken  the  longing  for  its  return, — that  the 
dangers  and  perils  which  ever  and  anon  are 


190  SUNSHINE. 

exciting  the  cry  for  help  may  lead  the  trembling 
one  to  distrust  self,  to  feel  no  security  in  mere 
human  help,  but  to  look  upwards  to  Him 
"  whose  arm  is  not  shortened  that  it  cannot 
save,  whose  ear  is  not  heavy  that  it  cannot 
hear." 

1 '  It  is  in  this  way  that  &  forgotten  God  recalls 
our  wandering  affections  to  Himself.  He  lays 
waste  the  enthroned  creature  that  He  may  once 
again  enthrone  Himself.  He  breaks  the  cistern, 
not  that  we  may  be  left  parched  and  fainting 
in  the  wilderness  of  life,  but  go  and  satisfy  our 
thirsting  souls  once  again  from  the  everlasting 
spring.  He  crushes  the  reed,  but  He  substitutes 
for  it  a  rock.  He  puts  far  away  from  us  '  lover 
and  friend/  with  all  the  unutterable  sweetness 
of  then*  affection  and  the  tenderness  of  their 
love  ;  but  what  does  He  substitute  ?  Himself, 
the  intense,  unfathomable  love  of  His  own 
infinite  mind,  the  presence  of  Christ,  and  com- 
munion with  heaven. " 

Precious  surely  is  the  time  of  sickness  if  it 
accomplish  this  gracious  design, — if  it  bring  the 
soul  to  a  nearer,  closer,  more  intimate  and 
endearing  fellowship  with  its  God  and  Father. 
Painful  it  doubtless  is  to  undergo  this  discipline, 


SUNSHINE.  191 

yet  is  it  needful.  And  shall  we  for  a  moment 
compare  the  brief  interval  of  suffering  with  the 
season  of  restored  joy  and  peace  and  gladness  ? 
What  though  health  may  have  declined  ?  what 
though  we  may  have  been  withdrawn  from 
the  world,  and  have  been  robbed  of  some  of  its 
enjoyments  ?  To  have  again  the  assurance  of 
the  Father  s  love,  of  the  Saviour's  intercession, 
of  the  Spirit's  help  and  guidance,  oh,  is  not 
this  infinitely  more  precious  ?  To  feel  that  oui 
spiritual  energies  have  been  quickened  and  re- 
newed,— that  our  faith,  and  love,  and  hope, 
have  been  strengthened  and  increased, — that 
our  thoughts  and  feelings,  our  desires  and  aspi- 
rations, have  all  become  more  heavenly  and 
pure, — oh,  surely  it  was  well  for  us  that  we 
were  left  for  a  season  amid  the  darkness,  until 
our  cry  of  distress  was  heard  and  answered, 
"  Lord,  lift  thou  up  the  light  of  thy  countenance 
upon  us." 

Yes,  Christian,  these  seasons  of  darkness  and 
trembling  are  all  needed,  and  it  is  only  when 
we  come  to  realise  how  much  we  have  gained 
by  them  that  we  see  how  gracious,  kind,  and 
good  our  heavenly  Father  has  been  in  permit- 
ting them,  and  that  we  feel  assured  that  they 


192  SUNSHINE. 

are  as  much  the  fruit  of  His  tender  love  as  His 
more  obvious  blessings.  Faint  not  then,  suffer- 
ing one,  if  even  yet  thou  hast  not  realised  the 
full  measure  of  God's  love  in  thy  trial.  Be  sure 
thou  art  precious  in  His  sight ;  and  although 
He  suffers  thee  for  a  while  to  tread  a  dark  and 
dangerous  path,  yet  He  is  nigh  at  hand.  Still 
grope  on,  albeit  with  a  trembling  heart ;  pray 
on,  albeit  with  faltering  tongue.  The  darkness 
will  yet  be  dispersed ;  the  gloom  will  pass  away ; 
thy  trial  hour  will  come  to  an  end,  and  thou 
wilt  again  rejoice  in  "  the  light  of  thy  Father's 
countenance." 

"'  A  little  while/  'twill  soon  be  past ; 

Why  should  we  shun  the  shame  and  cross? 
Oh,  let  us  in  His  footsteps  haste, 

Counting  for  Him  all  else  but  loss. 
Oh,  how  will  recompense  His  smile 
The  sufferings  of  this  '  little  while  ! ' " 

Not  for  ever  has  the  hand  of  love  been  with- 
drawn,— not  for  ever  has  the  voice  of  mercy 
been  hushed  to  silence, — not  for  ever  has  the 
fountain  of  heavenly  blessing  and  joy  been 
sealed  up, — not  for  ever  has  the  sunshine  de- 


SUNSHINE.  193 

parted,  and  the  misty  shadows  gathered  round 
thee.  "  Wait  on  the  Lord,  and  be  of  good  cou- 
rage." He  will  strengthen  thine  heart.  Yes, 
He  will  "  lift  upon  thee  the  light  of  His  coun- 
tenance," and  whisper  words  of  consolation  and 
endearment.  He  will  take  thee  by  the  hand, 
and  guide  thee  over  the  slippery  places.  He 
will  refresh  thy  soul  with  heavenly  manna  and 
living  water.  He  will  reveal  to  thee  more  than 
thou  hast  ever  yet  known  of  the  beauties  of 
holiness, — the  attractiveness  of  spiritual  com- 
munion and  intercourse, — the  joy  of  living  in 
sensible  fellowship,  and  in  childlike  simplicity 
and  trustfulness,  with  thy  God  and  Eedeemer. 
And  at  length,  when  the  end  of  the  journey  has 
been  reached,  when  thy  soul  is  meetened  for  a 
more  glorious  land,  He  will  send  His  messenger 
of  love.  "  Arise,  trembling  disciple,  and  come 
away.  Thy  journey  here  is  ended, — thy  war- 
fare is  finished.  Now  wilt  thou  realise  the 
faithfulness  and  love  of  thy  Eedeemer  in  the 
valley  of  the  shadow  of  death.  Now  will  His 
arm  sustain  thee  and  '  His  voice  cheer  and  com- 
fort thee.  He  comes  to  receive  you  to  Himself, 
that  where  He  is,  there  you  may  be  also/  He 
has  prepared  a  place  for  thee  in  the  mansions 

N 


194  SUNSHINE. 

of  His  Father's  house,  and  He  waits  to  welcome 
thee.  He  sends  thee  His  promise  and  assurance, 
saying,  '  Fear  thou  not,  for  I  am  with  thee :  be 
not  dismayed;  for  I  am  thy  God:  I  will 
strengthen  thee :  yea,  I  will  help  thee ;  yea,  I 
will  uphold  thee  with  the  right  hand  of  my 
righteousness/  " 

Oh,  sweet  and  blessed  hour  for  the  weary  and 
toil-worn!  Who  shall  describe  the  happiness 
awaiting  the  believer  in  that  world  where  the 
"  sun  shall  no  more  go  down,  neither  shall  the 
moon  withdraw  itself,  and  where  the  days  of 
mourning  shall  be  ended  ? "  True,  the  valley 
must  be  passed  through,  and  it  is  dark;  but 
there  is  a  song  of  triumph  prepared  for  that 
hour.  We  must  bid  farewell  to  time  and  time's 
possessions, — farewell  to  the  loved  ones  who 
have  been  our  companions  in  life's  journey, — 
farewell  to  home,  and  friends,  and  earthly  bless- 
ings. And  such  an  hour  is  full  of  deep  and 
awful  solemnity ;  but,  blessed  be  God,  there  is 
a  light  which  can  penetrate  even  the  darkness 
of  death's  valley, — there  is  a  voice  whose  whis- 
pered accents  will  then  fall  sweetly  on  the  lis- 
tening ear,  and  calm  every  rising  apprehension. 
"I  am  with  thee  still."     Thy  Saviour  is  near. 


SUNSHINE.  195 

He  has  come  to  fulfil  His  promise.  Let  thy 
soul  cling  to  it  with  unshaken  confidence. 
"  When  thou  passest  through  the  waters,  I  will 
be  with  thee ;  and  through  the  rivers,  they  shall 
not  overflow  thee ;  when  thou  walkest  through  the 
fire,  thou  shalt  not  be  burned;  neither  shall  the 
flame  kindle  upon  thee.  For  I  am  the  Lord 
thy  God,  the  Holy  One  of  Israel,  thy  Saviour." 

"  Shudder  not  to  pass  the  stream; 
Venture  all  thy  care  on  Him ; 
Him,  whose  dying  love  and  power 
Still'd  its  tossing,  hush'd  its  roar. 

Safe  is  the  expanded  wave, 
Gentle  as  a  summer's  eve ; 
Not  one  object  of  His  care 
Ever  sufTer'd  shipwreck  there. 

See  the  haven  full  in  view ; 
Love  Divine  shall  bear  thee  through ; 
Trust  to  that  propitious  gale ; 
Weigh  thy  anchor,  spread  thy  sail." 

Soon  shalt  thou  bask  in  the  unclouded  radiance 
of  thy  Father's  countenance ;  thou  shalt  see  the 
King  in  His  beauty,  and  have  no  more  need  to 
offer  the  prayer,  "  Lord,  lift  on  me  the  light  of 


196  SUNSHINE, 

Thy  countenance/'  for  never  again  shall  a  pass- 
ing cloud  fling  its  dark  shadow  between  thee 
and  thy  God, — never  again  shalt  thou  know 
doubt,  or  fear,  or  peril, — no  evening  will  ever 
come, — no  gloomy  night  enwrap  thy  spirit;  but 
thou  shalt  "have  fulness  of  joy,  and  pleasures  at 
God's  right  hand  for  evermore." 

0  Lord,  heavenly  Father,  I  beseech  Thee 
look  down  in  pity  and  compassion  upon  me, 
Thine  afflicted  servant  1  I  desire  to  acknow- 
ledge my  humble  sense  of  my  sins,  negligences, 
and  errors,  and  to  plead  the  all-sufficient  merits 
and  the  precious  blood-shedding  of  Christ  my 
Saviour.  Blessed  Jesus  I  Thy  followers  and 
people  have  the  assurance  of  Thine  own  graci- 
ous declaration,  that  if  they  come  to  Thee  weary 
and  heavy-laden  they  shall  find  rest  unto  their 
souls.  0  Saviour  of  the  world !  I  come  to  Thee 
weary  and  heavy-laden  with  the  burden  of  sin  ; 
may  I  find  deliverance  in  Thee  I  May  I  find 
access  to  Thy  favour  by  that  living  way  which 
Thou  has  appointed.  May  my  faith  fail  not  in 
the  day  of  trial  1  and  when  clouds  and  darkness 
are  around  my  steps,  oh,  be  Thou  near  to  help 
me,  and  to  lift  upon  me  the  light  of  Thy  counte- 


SUNSHINE.  197 

nance !  Grant,  0  Lord,  that  I  may  be  kept 
from  all  distrust  or  murmuring,  and  may  I  have 
grace  to  resign  myself  into  Thy  hands,  with 
entire  submission  to  Thy  wise  appointments. 
Thou,  Lord,  knowest  the  discipline  I  need,  the 
furnace  of  trial  through  which  I  must  pass,  till 
the  love  of  sin  is  wholly  removed,  and  my  heart 
purified  from  all  iniquity.  Help  me  by  Thy 
Holy  Spirit  to  surrender  my  will  to  Thine,  and 
to  feel  assured  that  Thine  eye  of  love  is  ever 
watching  me.  Oh,  calm  my  spirit,  and  speak 
peace  to  me  in  my  anxieties,  and  enable  me  to 
say  under  every  trying  dispensation,  however 
grievous,  "  Blessed  be  the  name  of  the  Lord  !  " 
Give  me  patience  to  bear  all  my  sufferings,  and 
quietly  to  wait  Thy  time  for  relief.  Thou  takest 
pleasure  in  them  that  hope  in  Thy  mercy ;  oh, 
increase  my  faith,  sustain  my  hope  in  Thee  ! 
Forsake  me  not  when  my  strength  faileth.  If 
Thou,  Lord,  wilt  be  pleased  to  support  me, 
nothing  will  be  too  heavy  for  me.  Oh,  make  Thy 
strength  perfect  in  my  weakness  !  Thou  who 
delightest  in  mercy,  save  me  for  Thy  mercy's 
sake.  Thou  knowest  my  exceeding  weakness. 
Oh,  hold  Thou  me  up,  that  my  footsteps  slip 
not  1     Strengthen  me  with  all  Thy  might,  ac- 


198  SUNSHINE. 

cording  to  Thy  glorious  power,  unto  all  patience 
and  long-suffering,  with  joyfulness.  Gracious 
God,  restore  me  to  health,  if  it  seem  good  unto 
Thee,  in  order  to  Thy  great  ends,  and  my  own 
interest. 

And  however  Thou  shalt  determine  concern- 
ing me  in  this,  yet  make  my  repentance  perfect, 
my  passage  safe,  and  my  faith  strong ;  that 
when  Thou  shalt  call  my  soul  from  the  prison 
of  the  body,  it  may  enter  into  the  rest  of  the 
sons  of  God,  through  Jesus  Christ.  And  to 
Thy  name,  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost,  be 
ascribed  all  glory  and  praise,  world  without  end. 
— Amen. 


JOHN  XXI.  15-17. 

"  Thou    knowest,"    Lord,  the  weariness  and 
sorrow 

Of  the  sad  heart  that  comes  to  Thee  for  rest, 
Cares  of  to-day  and  burdens  of  to-morrow, 

Blessings  implored,  and  sins  to  be  confessed ; 
I  come  before  Thee  at  Thy  gracious  word, 
And  lay  them  at  Thy  feet,  Thou  knowest,  Lord. 


SUNSHINE.  199 

"  Thou  knowest  "  all  the  past,  how  long  and 

blindly 
On  the  dark  mountains  the  lost  wanderer 

stray'd, 
How  the  Good  Shepherd  follow'd,   and  how 

kindly 
He  bore  it  home,  upon  His  shoulders  laid, 
And  heaFd  the  bleeding  wounds,  and  soothed 

the  pain, 
And  brought  back  life,  and  hope,  and  strength 


"  Thou  knowest "  all  the  present,  each  tempta- 
tion, 

Each  toilsome  duty,  each  foreboding  fear ; 
All  to  myself  assign  d  of  tribulation, 

Or  to  beloved  ones,  than  self  more  dear  ! 
All  pensive  memories  as  I  journey  on, 
Longings  for  vanished  smiles  and  voices  gone. 

"  Thou  knowest "  all  the  future  gleams  of  glad- 
ness, 

By  stormy  clouds  too  quickly  overcast, — 
Hopes  of  sweet  fellowship  and  parting  sadness, 

And  the  dark  river  to  be  cross'd  at  last : 


200  SUNSHINE. 

Oh,  what  could  confidence  and  hope  afford 
To  tread  that  path,  but  this,  "  Thou  knowest, 
Lord !  " 

"  Thou  knowest,"  not  alone  as  God  all-knowing; 
As  man,  our  mortal  weakness  Thou  hast 
proved 
On  earth,  with  purest  sympathies  o'erflowing — 
0  Saviour,  Thou  has  wept,  and  Thou  hast 
loved ! 
And  love  and  sorrow  still  to  Thee  may  come, 
And  find  a  hiding-place,  a  rest,  a  home. 

Therefore  I  come,  Thy  gentle  call  obeying, 
And  lay  my  sins  and  sorrows  at  Thy  feet, 

On  everlasting  strength  my  weakness  staying, 
Clothed  in  Thy  robe  of  righteousness  com- 
plete. 

Then  rising  and  refresh'd,  I  leave  Thy  throne, 

And  follow  on  to  know  as  I  am  known. 


SUNSHINE.  201 


2  KINGS  XX.  19. 

Whatever  my  God  ordains  is  right ! 

His  will  is  ever  just : 
Howe'er  He  orders  now  my  cause, 
I  will  be  still  and  trust. 
He  is  my  God, 
Though  dark  my  road  ; 
He  holds  me  that  I  shall  not  fall, 
Wherefore  to  Him  I  leave  it  all. 

Whate'er  my  God  ordains  is  right ! 

He  never  will  deceive ; 
He  leads  me  by  the  proper  path, 
And  so  to  Him  I  cleave, 
And  take  content 
What  He  hath  sent ; — 
His  hand  can  turn  my  griefs  away, 
And  patiently  I  wait  His  day. 

Whate'er  my  God  ordains  is  right ! 

He  taketh  thought  for  me  ; 
The  cup  that  my  Physician  gives 

No  poison'd  draught  can  be, 


202  SUNSHINE. 

But  medicine  due ; 

For  God  is  true, 
And  on  that  changeless  truth  I  build, 
And  all  my  heart  with  hope  is  fill'd. 

Whate'er  my  God  ordains  is  right ! 

Though  I  the  cup  must  drink 
That  bitter  seems  to  my  faint  heart, 
I  will  not  fear  nor  shrink : 
Tears  pass  away 
With  dawn  of  day ; 
Sweet  comfort  yet  shall  fill  my  heart, 
And  pain  and  sorrow  all  depart. 

Whate'er  my  God  ordains  is  right ! 

My  Light,  my  Life,  is  He, 
Who  cannot  will  me  aught  but  good — 
I  trust  Him  utterly ; 
For  well  I  know, 
In  joy  or  woe, 
We  soon  shall  see,  as  sunlight  clear, 
How  faithful  was  our  Guardian  here. 

Whate'er  my  God  ordains  is  right ! 

Here  will  I  take  my  stand — 
Though  sorrow,  need,  or  death,  make  earth 

For  me  a  desert  land, 


SUNSHINE,  203 

My  Father's  care 

Is  round  me  there  ; 
He  holds  me  that  I  shall  not  fall, 
And  so  to  Him  I  leave  it  all. 

Lyra  Gekmanica. 


XTTT. 

©race  g>uffictent. 


2  Cor.  xii.  9. 

"  And  he  said  unto  me,  My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee  :  for 
my  strength  is  made  perfect  in  weakness." 

Nothing  affords  such  sweet  comfort  in  a  time 
of  sickness  and  trial  as  the  thought  of  the  "  all- 
sufficiency "  of  Christ  our  Eedeemer.  Be  our 
case  ever  so  trying,  our  wants  ever  so  nume- 
rous, our  enemies  ever  so  strong,  our  fears  ever 
so  appalling,  our  danger  ever  so  imminent — 
Jesus  is  "  all-sufficient."  It  is  only  our  weak 
faith  that  makes  us  to  become  downcast  and 
sad  at  heart.  What  is  the  assurance  of  Scrip- 
ture ?  "  He  is  able  to  make  all  grace  abound 
toward  you,  that  ye  always,  having  all  suffi- 
ciency in  all  things,  may  abound  to  every  good 
word  and  work."  "All  grace/" — "all  suffi- 
ciency l" — in  "all  things" — and  these  to 
'abound."  "Like  as  a  father  pitieth  his 
children,  so  the  Lord  pitieth  them  that  fear 
Him." 

Here  there  is  enough  surely  to  afford  comfort 
— " grace"  " sufficiency"  "pity" 


208  GRACE  SUFFICIENT. 

Christian,  what  is  your  sorrow — your  trial — 
your  temptation  ? 

Is  it,  "I  have  had  a  lengthened  time  of  sick- 
ness and  pain, — my  strength  has  failed,  and  the 
skill  of  man  has  been  unavailing  ?  Around  me 
I  can  see  no  ray  of  hope, — no  symptom  of  re- 
turning health, — no  indication  of  the  removal  of 
my  disease, — and  my  prayers  have  returned  to 
me  unanswered." 

Ah,  Christian,  it  is  to  be  feared  there  is 
within  thee  a  spirit  of  murmuring.  Whose 
hand  is  laid  upon  thee  ?  Thy  Father's.  Why 
has  He  chastened  thee?  To  bring  thy  will 
fully  into  conformity  with  His  own.  Does  not 
He,  "  to  whom  all  hearts  are  open,  and  from 
whom  no  secrets  are  hid,"  know  best  when  His 
gracious  purpose  has  been  accomplished  in  thee, 
His  child  ?  Is  it  not  a  token  for  good  that  thy 
days  have  been  prolonged  ?  He  waits  but  to 
see  thee  bowing  submissively  before  Him — say- 
ing from  thy  inmost  soul,  "  Do  with  me  what 
seemeth  good  in  Thy  sight," — and  He  will 
either  remove  the  cross  from  off  thee,  or  give 
thee  the  blessedness  of  realising  the  truth  of 
these  words,  "  My  yoke  is  easy,  and  my  burden 
is  light." 


GBA  GE  SUFFICIENT.  209 

But  perhaps  thou  art  distressed  by  doubts 
and  fears  that  God  is  angry  with  thee, — that  in 
displeasure — not  in  love — He  has  laid  thee  low. 
Oftentimes  thou  art  compelled  to  look  back- 
ward, and  the  retrospect  is  gloomy, — a  retro- 
spect of  ingratitude,  forgetfulness,  wandering, — 
of  warnings  unheeded,  providences  disregarded, 
mercies  received  unthankfully ;  and  the  thought 
arises,  "  For  these  transgressions  I  am  chastened 
of  the  Lord ;  they  are  too  aggravated,  too  nume- 
rous, to  be  forgiven!' 

"Forgiven  I"  "My  grace  is  sufficient  for 
thee."  "  The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  cleanseth 
from  all  sin."  "  If  any  man  sin,  we  have  an 
advocate  with  the  Father." 

It  is  well  to  look  backward — well  to  recall 
the  past ;  but  not  in  a  gloomy,  despairing  spirit 
— not  as  if  by  present  or  future  suffering  we 
could  atone  for  sin.  No,  assuredly  ;  but  to  lead 
us  "to  believe  on  Him  who  is  able  to  save  unto 
the  uttermost/' — to  "  believe,  and  be  saved." 
All  our  woe  and  misery  could  not  atone  for  any 
one  transgression ;  and  it  is  not  by  a  painful 
counting  up  of  duties  undone,  and  sins  com- 
mitted, or  by  a  resolving  ever  so  earnestly  to  be 
more  careful  hi  all  these  things  for  the  time  to 

o 


210  GBAGE  SUFFICIENT. 

come,  that  we  can  be  saved.  Salvation  is  alone 
in  Christ.  To  Him  we  must  go— to  Him  who, 
by  His  death,  purchased  for  Himself  the  heirs 
of  death,  that  they  might  become  heirs  of  glory, 
and  who  sends  sickness  and  trial  to  check  and 
restrain  us, — to  make  us  bethink  ourselves, — to 
bring  us  to  Him,  the  only  Saviour  and  Ke- 
deemer, — that  we  may  be  driven  from  the 
world,  and  from  ourselves,  to  Him,  and  in  Him 
find  rest  unto  our  souls. 

Christian,  look  away  then  from  self  and  sin 
— so  vile  and  loathsome — to  Jesus  thy  Brother, 
Saviour,  God.  He  will  not  cast  thee  off,  guilty 
as  thou  art ;  He  will  not  fail  to  welcome  thee  \ 
but  He  will  say  unto  thee,  "  Be  of  good  cheer  ; 
thy  sins  are  forgiven  thee."  And  if  at  anytime 
thou  art  becoming  faint  and  weary  in  the  pil- 
grimage of  life,  oh,  turn  hopefully — turn  without 
a  misgiving  to  these  words,  "  My  grace  is  suffi- 
cient for  thee  ;  for  my  strength  is  made  perfect 
in  weakness." 

But  perhaps  this  is  not  thy  case.  You  tell 
us,  "  I  feel  and  acknowledge  the  infinity  of  God's 
mercy  in  Christ.  For  years  have  I  tasted  that 
the  Lord  is  gracious,  and  He  has  borne  with  me 
amid  countless  sins  and  shortcomings;  but  I 


GRACE  SUFFICIENT.  211 

have  an  evil  heart  of  unbelief,  against  whose 
suggestions  I  have  continually  to  struggle,  and 
whose  temptings  I  sometimes  feel  myself  unable 
to  resist.  No  sooner  have  I  gained  a  victory 
over  some  besetting  sin,  some  evil  temper, 
some  worldly  desire, — than  another,  equally 
powerful  and  seductive,  presents  itself,  and  from 
day  to  day  I  am  engaged  in  a  conflict,  battling 
with  some  enemy,  resisting  some  onset,  and 
hardly  able  to  keep  my  ground." 

Eeader, — yours  is  precisely  the  Christian's 
experience, — just  what  you  were  told  to  expect 
when  you  entered  the  narrow  way, — and  what 
you  may  continue  to  anticipate  until  you  "  enter 
the  rest  which  remaineth  for  the  people  of  God." 
But  why  be  discouraged?  He  who  has  sus- 
tained you  hitherto  will  be  "with  you"  still. 
Your  strength  has  often  been  fast  failing,  but 
you  have  not  been  overcome  ;  why  then  should 
you  dread  that  defeat  awaits  you  ?  The  very 
struggles  you  have  maintained  havo  added  to 
your  strength,  and  given  you  fresh  vigour ;  the 
very  fear  of  being  vanquished  has  been  a  stimulus 
to  new  exertion,  and  is  a  sign  that  you  "  will 
finally  prevail."  Your  enemies  are  strong  and 
mighty,— yes,  but  not  stronger  than  those  whom 


212  GRACE  SUFFICIENT. 

your  blessed  Saviour  met  and  trampled  under 
foot.  He  will  nerve  your  arm  afresh  for  the 
struggle.  He  will  help  you  not  only  to  main- 
tain your  ground,  but  to  gain  the  victory  ;  and 
if  ever  you  feel  within  you  the  risings  of  fear,  or 
doubt,  or  despondency,  oh,  be  cheered  by  these 
two  precious  assurances, — "  My  grace  is  suffi- 
cient for  thee  \"  and  again,  "  To  him  that  over- 
cometh  will  I  grant  to  sit  with  me  on  my 
tln:one,  even  as  I  also  overcame,  and  am  set 
down  with  my  Father  on  Ins  throne/' 

Christian,  whatever  your  trial,  distress,  or 
sorrow,  have  faith  in  the  promise  of  your 
Saviour.  All  else  may  fail  you,  but  "  His  word 
standeth  sure/'  You  will  have  your  struggles 
and  conflicts, — you  will  have  dark  and  gloomy 
days  and  nights  of  storm  and  tempest ;  but  fear 
not — you  will  be  carried  safely  through  them 
all.  You  may  be  wounded  and  torn,  and, 
covered  with  many  scars, — bearing  the  marks 
of  many  a  hard-fought  battle, — with  the  dust 
of  a  weary  journey  on  your  garments, — with  the 
sword  not  resting  in  its  scabbard,  but  grasped 
as  if  for  another  onset, — you  may  be  summoned 
from  the  battle-plain  ;  but  what  then  ? 

Away  from  conflict,  from  tumult,  and  strife. 


GRACE  SUFFICIENT.  213 

— away  from  sin,  temptation,  and  sorrow, — 
away,  in  that  blessed  home  of  peace  and  purity, 
where  no  fear  shall  again  disturb,  no  foe  again 
attack,  no  evil  heart  again  lead  astray, — you 
will  "  rest  from  all  your  labours/'  The  trumpet 
will  no  more  summon  to  the  battle ;  its  last 
clarion-note  will  be  "  Victory ! "  and  amid  the 
glad  hosannas  of  the  heavenly  hosts  you  will 
be  welcomed  as  another  conqueror, — a  conqueror 
through  Him  whose  grace  was  sufficient  for 
thee,  and  whose  strength  was  made  perfect  in 


0  most  gracious  Father,  who  hast  invited  all 
who  feel  their  need  of  Thy  grace  to  come  unto 
Thee,  have  mercy  upon  me,  for  I  am  in  trouble. 
I  am  deeply  sensible  that  I  am  far  from  exer- 
cising that  unreserved  submission  to  Thy  will 
which  I  ought  to  exercise.  Help  me,  I  beseech 
Thee,  so  to  trust  in  Thy  infinite  goodness  and 
unerring  wisdom,  that  I  may  be  able  to  say 
from  my  very  heart,  M  Thy  will  be  done."  Oh, 
teach  me  to  be  grateful  for  the  manifold  com- 
forts allotted  me,  and  support  me  graciously, 
that  my  soul  be  not  cast  down  and  disquieted 
within  me.    Keep  me  from  all  repining  thoughts, 


214  GRACE  SUFFICIENT. 

and  do  Thou  make  Thy  grace  at  all  times  suffi- 
cient for  me,  and  perfect  Thy  strength  in  my 
weakness.  Let  my  soul  be  supported  by  faith, 
hope,  and  patience,  under  all  the  sufferings  I 
may  yet  endure.  Bless  the  means  that  are  used, 
and  make  them  effectual,  if  it  be  Thy  good 
pleasure,  for  restoring  me  to  health,  that  I  may 
again  praise  Thee  in  the  assembly  of  Thy 
saints.  Make  me  willing  to  glorify  Thee  either 
by  life  or  by  death.  Give  me  a  simple  depend- 
ence upon  Thee,  and  enable  me  in  all  things  to 
commit  my  way  unto  Thee,  through  Jesus 
Christ  our  Lord  and  Saviour. — Amen. 


ISAIAH  I.  10. 

The  way  seems  dark  about  me,  overhead 
The  clouds  have  long  since  met  in  gloomy  spread ; 
And  when  I  look'd  to  see  the  day  break  through, 
Cloud  after  cloud  came  up  with  volume  new. 

And  in  that  shadow  I  have  pass'd  along, 
Feeling  myself  grow  weak  as  it  grew  strong ; 


GRACE  SUFFICIENT.  215 

Walking  in  doubt  and  searching  for  the  way, 
And  often  at  a  stand,  as  now  to-day. 

Lord,  I  am  not  sufficient  for  these  things ; — 
Give  me  the  light  that  Thy  sweet  presence 

brings ; 
Give  me  Thy  grace,   give  me  Thy  constant 

strength ; 
Lord,  for  my  comfort  now  appear  at  length. 

It  may  be  that  my  way  doth  seem  confused, 
Because  my  heart  of  Thy  way  is  afraid, — 
Because  my  eyes  have  constantly  refused 
To  see  the  only  opening  Thou  hast  made. 

Because  my  will  would  cross  some  flow'ry  plain 
Where  Thou  hast  thrown  a  hedge  from  side  to 

side, 
And  turneth  from  the  stony  path  of  pain, 
Its  trouble,  or  its  ease,  not  even  tried. 

If  thus  I  try  to  force  my  way  along, 
The  smoothest  road  encumber'd  is  to  me 
For  were  I  as  an  angel  swift  or  strong, 
I  could  not  go  unless  allow'd  by  Thee. 


216  GRACE  SUFFICIENT. 

And  now  I  pray  Thee,  Lord,  to  lead  Thy  child — 
Poor,  wretched  wanderer  from  Thy  grace  and 

love — 
Whatever  way  Thou  pleasest  through  the  wild, 
So  it  but  take  me  to  mv  home  above. 


PSALM  LXV.  2. 

0  Thou  who  hearest  prayer 
The  God  of  power  and  might, 
To  seek  Thy  face  be  all  our  care, 
Our  whole  delight. 
0  God  of  grace  and  love, 
Kegard  us  from  Thy  throne ; 
Send  down  to  us  the  heavenly  dove, 
Seal  us  Thine  own  [ 

We  have  no  other  trust 
But  Thy  dear  sacrifice  ; 
Our  Hope,  Thou  Holy  One  and  Just, 
Do  not  despise. 
Sinful,  we  plead  Thy  blood  ; 
Weak,  we  implore  Thy  power  ; 
Saviour,  remember  us  for  good 
In  danger's  hour  I 


GBAOE  SUFFICIENT.  217 

Oome  with  Thy  saving  strength, 
With  healing  virtue  come  ; 
And  let  Thy  guiding  hand  at  length 
Conduct  us  home ; 
Till,  saved  from  all  annoy 
Of  earthly  fear  and  strife, 
We  enter  into  endless  joy, 
And  heavenly  life. 


XIV, 

if  t&e  lotto  mat 


1  John  v.  14,  15 

" .  .  ;  .  If  we  ask  anything  according  to  his  will,  he  hearetk 
us;  And  if  we  know  that  he  hear  us,  whatsoever  we  ask, 
we  know  that  we  have  the  petitions  that  we  desired  of 
hirn." 

There  is  much  to  comfort  us  in  these  words. 
When  health  fails,  when  prosperity  departs,  or 
when  our  homes  become  the  homes  of  mourning, 
we  are  prone,  if  we  do  not  watch  against  the 
danger,  to  have  our  confidence  in  the  power  and 
efficacy  of  prayer  weakened, — nay,  sometimes, 
for  a  season,  destroyed. 

Perhaps  we  have  offered  up  petitions  for 
health,  for  plenty,  for  prosperity  in  the  world, 
and  instead  of  these  things  we  have  had  sick- 
ness, adversity,  and  ever-increasing  cares  and 
troubles,  and  we  have  rashly  supposed  that  our 
petitions  were  unheard. 

Or,  more  painful  still,  perhaps  we  prayed  for 
the  assurance  of  forgiveness, — for  a  realising 
sense  of  God's  love  in  Christ, — for  stronger 
faith, — for  some  precious  spiritual  blessing  or 
comfort,  which  we  imagined  would  insure  our 


222  IF  THE  LORD  WILL. 

happiness,  peace,  joy.  But  we  continued  still 
downcast,  sad ;  faith's  grasp  was  feeble ;  every 
wave  that  dashed  against  us  seemed  as  if  des- 
tined to  hurl  us  against  the  rocks,  and  our  cry 
of  distress  was  lost  amid  the  roar  of  the  angry 
elements.  Had  not  God  forgotten  to  be  gra- 
cious ?  Was  it  not  almost  needless  to  con- 
tinue praying  ?  Whose  case  was  so  urgent, 
whose  danger  so  imminent,  whose  need  so  great 
as  ours  ?  and  yet  our  petitions  had  met  with  no 
response, — our  entreaties  for  help  had  been  un- 
availing ? 

Such  questions  our  unbelieving  hearts  fre- 
quently suggest,  and  they  render  necessary  dis- 
cipline more  severe,  trying,  and  long-continued, 
until  we  are  brought  to  honour  God  by  fully 
and  implicitly  trusting  Him. 

Three  things  ought  to  be  ever  kept  in  view 
with  regard  to  prayer. 

First,  the  range,  the  extent  to  which  we 
may  go  in  our  petitions  at  a  throne  of  grace, 
although  vast  and  soul-satisfying,  has  yet  a 
boundary-line.  It  is  inscribed  with  these  words 
— "  According  to  His  will" 

We  are  at  best  but  children, — wilful,  erring 
children, — ignorant  of  what  would  prove  a  bless- 


IF  THE  LORD  WILL.  223 

ing  or  a  curse  to  us, — often  anxious  for  those 
things  which  would  prove  hurtful,  and  slow  to 
believe  that  a  painful  cross,  a  heavy  affliction,  is 
really  the  test  thing  God  could  send  us.  Our 
heavenly  Father,  who  has  graciously  adopted  us 
in  Christ,  and  means  to  train  us  to  obedience, 
self-denial,  and  submission,  whilst,  in  the  fulness 
of  His  love,  offering  the  inestimable  treasures  of 
His  grace,  will  only  bestow  upon  us  what  He 
knows  to  be  truly  and  lastingly  beneficial  to 
our  souls.  Therefore  His  promise  of  blessing  is 
limited  to  things  which  are  "  according  to  His 
will." 

But  some  anxious,  trembling  one  may  say, 
"  Surely,  to  implore  the  assurance  of  forgiveness, 
— to  entreat  the  bestowal  of  pardon  through  the 
blood  of  Christ,— to  ask  for  stronger  faith,  deeper 
love,  livelier  hope, — to  offer  such  petitions  as 
these, — must  be  '  according  to  His  luilV  " 

Yes,  assuredly  ;  oh  that  we  could  ever  doubt 
it,  after  all  that  God  has  clone  to  convince  us  of 
His  willingness  to  forgive,  to  pardon  freely, 
and  for  ever  !  See  page  after  page  of  Holy 
Scripture  bright  with  promises,  invitations,  en- 
treaties !  See  the  loving  Saviour,  anxious  to 
melt  hard  and  stony  hearts,   weeping  over  the 


224  IF  THE  LORD  WILL. 

impenitent,  speaking  tenderly  to  the  guilty,  the 
polluted,  the  vile, — giving  up  His  precious  life 
to  ransom  souls  from  destruction, — grasping,  in 
His  latest  hour,  a  victim  from  the  power  of  the 
enemy,  to  bear  it  as  a  trophy  of  the  victory  of 
redeeming  love ;  and  who  shall  dare  say  there 
is  unwillingness  on  the  part  of  God  to  forgive  ? 
Hear  these  words:  "  Who  is  a  God  like  unto 
thee,  that  pardoneth  iniquity,  and  passeth  by 
the  transgression  of  the  remnant  of  his  heritage  ? 
He  retaineth  not  his  anger  for  ever,  because  he 
delighteth  in  mercy.  He  will  turn  again,  he 
will  have  compassion  upon  us ,  he  will  subdue 
our  iniquities  ;  and  thou  wilt  cast  all  their  sins 
into  the  depths  of  the  sea/'  Listen  to  the 
Saviour's  description  of  His  mission :  "  The 
Spirit  of  the  Lord  is  upon  me,  because  he  hath 
anointed  me  to  preach  the  gospel  to  the  poor, 
he  hath  sent  me  to  heal  the  broken-hearted,  to 
preach  deliverance  to  the  captives,  and  recover- 
ing of  sight  to  the  blind,  to  set  at  liberty  them 
that  are  bruised,  to  preach  the  acceptable  year 
of  the  Lord."  And  what  was  His  language  of 
bitter  lamentation  ?  "Ye  will  not  come  unto 
me  that  ye  may  be  saved." 

Oh,  there  is  no  unwillingness  on  the  part  of 


IF  THE  LORD  WILL.  225 

God ;  but,  alas!  there  is  unbelief  on  ours.  We 
will  not  take  God  at  His  word, — we  will  persist 
in  rearing  barriers  where  there  should  be  none, 
and  in  cherishing  doubts  and  fears  when  our 
hearts  might  be  filled  with  peace  and  joy  in  the 
Holy  Ghost. 

God  has  given  us  His  word, — He  bids  us  lay 
hold  on  His  promises, — He  invites  us  to  be  re- 
conciled,— He  urges  us  to  accept  forgiveness, — 
He  condescends  to  entreat  us  in  accents  of  win- 
ning tenderness,  and  sets  before  us  His  intense 
anxiety  for  our  salvation  in  these  words: 
"  God  so  loved  the  world,  that  he  gave  his 
only -begotten  Son,  that  wJwsoever  believeth 
on  him  should  not  perish,  but  have  everlasting 
life." 

We  ourselves,  then,  are  to  blame,  if  we  have 
not  the  assurance  of  forgiveness.  We  will  not 
trust  God.  We  refuse  to  credit  His  word.  Of 
this  we  may  be  sure,  that  in  praying  for  the 
grace  of  assurance  we  are  doing  right.  Let  us 
pray  on  and  wrestle  with  God  until  there  is 
within  us  that  which  we  long  for.  So  also  in 
regard  to  faith,  and  love,  and  hope.  If  we  have 
them  not  in  their  vigour,  let  us  not  rest  satis- 
fied until  they  are  increased.     In  asking  these 

f 


226  IF  THE  LORD  WILL. 

things,  we  are  asking  what  is  "  according  to 
His  will." 

In  many  things  we  are  not;  and  therefore 
something  else  is  given :  sickness,  because  it  is 
better  for  us,  in  present  circumstances,  than 
unbroken  health,  is  the  answer  to  our  prayer, — 
adversity,  because,  perhaps,  we  are  trusting  too 
much  to  our  prosperity,  is  the  gift  bestowed. 
Friends  are  taken  from  us,  and  our  hearts  are 
wounded  and  stricken,  because  we  set  them  as 
idols  on  the  altar  of  our  affections,  where  God 
must  reign  supreme.  Our  petitions  were  not 
"  according  to  His  will,"  and  He  gave  us  what 
He  saw  to  be  needful. 

Again,  we  must  strive  to  realise  the  fact  that 
our  prayers  have  been  really  heard. 

When  once  we  have  carefully  examined  the 
nature  of  our  requests,  and  been  persuaded  that, 
as  far  as  we  know,  they  are  "  according  to  His 
will,"  we  should  simply  lay  them  before  the 
Lord,  assured  that  He  not  only  hears  us,  but 
that  "  we  have  the  petitions  that  we  desired  of 
Him." 

Not  perhaps  the  very  blessings  we  asked, — 
not  health,  plenty,  peace,  prosperity,  freedom 
from  sorrow,  at  the  very  time  and  in  the  very 


IF  THE  LORD  WILL.  227 

way  we  sought.  We  must  not  presume  to  dic- 
tate to  God.  He  hears  and  answers  as  a  sove- 
reign. But  because  the  highest,  choicest  bless- 
ing which  a  Christian  can  desire,  and  for  which 
he  ought  to  pray  most  ardently,  fervently,  and 
perseveringly,  is,  to  love  what  God  loves,  to 
choose  what  God  chooses,  to  will  what  God 
wills, — because  this  ought  ever  to  be  the  upper- 
most petition  on  his  heart, — he  may  be  sure 
that,  if  he  ask  it,  he  will  receive  it,  and  all  the 
other  blessings  he  prayed  for,  up  to  the  extent 
when  their  bestowal  would  hinder  the  progress 
of  the  life  of  God  in  the  soul.  Christian,  rest 
assured  your  cry  has  been  heard;  be  not  dis- 
quieted and  cast  down  because  you  have  not 
received  precisely  the  blessing  you  desired.  It 
was  not  good  for  you.  You  thought  it  would 
render  you  happy ;  but  it  would  have  had  no 
such  virtue.  That  only  can  make  you  really 
happy  which  has  the  stamp  of  God's  approval 
on  it,  and  which  is  "according  to  His  will." 
Take  what  He  has  sent,  be  it  sickness,  loss  of 
friends,  loss  of  property ;  take  it,  as  what  your 
heavenly  Father  saw  to  be  needful,  and  pray 
that  He  would,  by  His  Holy  Spirit,  sanctify  it 
to  you,-  that  it  may  increase  your  trust  in 


228  IF  THE  LORD  WILL. 

Him,  and  render  you  more  submissive  to  His 
will. 

Lastly,  we  must  ever  strive  to  cherish  the 
conviction  that  earnest,  persevering  prayer  is 
not  merely  a  privilege  and  duty,  but  that  it  is, 
through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  prevalent  with 
God,  and  is  accomplishing  its  purpose. 

When  we  fail  to  see  the  blessing  come  down 
which  we  earnestly  prayed  for,  or  when  some- 
thing very  different  is  given  us,  we  are  apt  to 
yield  to  unbelief;  and  as,  perhaps,  trial  after 
trial  happens,  we  say  with  one  of  old,  "  All 
these  things  are  against  me." 

Christian,  does  the  child,  when  gazing  on  an 
intricate  piece  of  mechanism,  understand  how 
wheel  fits  into  wheel,  how  the  one  is  dependent 
on  the  other,  and  how  the  very  smallest  is  ne- 
cessary to  accomplish  the  final  result? 

Neither  can  you  understand  how  the  various 
trials  and  crosses  in  thy  life  are  all  working 
together, — combining  in  conformity  with  the 
will  of  God  in  carrying  on  to  its  accomplish- 
ment the  sanctification  of  thy  nature, — until  at 
length  thou  art  fitted  for  a  holier,  purer  dwell- 
ing-place with  thy  Father  and  thy  God. 

Remember,   "  what  fchou  knowest  not  now 


IF  THE  LORD  WILL.  229 

thou  shalt  know  hereafter,"  and  let  this  satisfy 
thee.  A  time  will  yet  come  when,  if  faithful 
unto  death,  thou  wilt  acknowledge  with  a  grate- 
ful heart  that  thy  prayers  have  been  fully 
answered,  that  everything  from  God  was  given 
in  deepest  love,  and  that  "  with  Christ  Jesus 
He  freely  gave  you  all  things."  Despond  not, 
even  though  sorrow  upon  sorrow  be  thy  portion, 
and  the  heavy  billows  of  affliction  seem  cease- 
lessly to  roll  over  thee.  Fix  the  eye  of  faith  on 
the  painless  home  of  light  and  love,  and  be 
cheered  by  the  thought  that,  following  the 
Saviour  close  in  sorrow  here,  thou  shalt  be  pri- 
vileged to  follow  Him  close  in  bliss  hereafter. 

Deem  it  not  a  "strange  thing"  that  trial  has 
happened  unto  thee.  Strange  it  would  have 
been,  if  thou  hadst  only  joy  where  thy  Saviour 
had  so  much  sorrow, — if  thou  hadst  a  quiet 
resting-place  where  He  could  find  no  spot 
whereon  to  rest  His  wearied  head,  —  if  the 
world  had  offered  thee  a  place  of  calm  and 
sweet  repose,  when  it  denied  a  shelter  to  thy 
suffering,  mournful  Lord  !  No,  Christian ;  not 
here,  not  here,  canst  thou  look  for  repose,  or 
rest,  or  freedom  from  trial,  but  in  that  blessed 
home  of  tranauillity  and  joy,  where  the  count- 


230  IF  THE  LORD  WILL. 

less  ages  of  eternity,  as  they  roll  on,  shall  never 
behold  the  shedding  of  one  single  tear,  or  catch 
the  echo  of  one  faintest  sigh. 

Be  this  your  stay,  and  let  it  gladden  your 
every  onward  step — 

"  Who  loves  the  cross,  and  Him  who  on  it  died, 
In  every  cloud  sees  Jesus  by  his  side." 

0  God,  our  heavenly  Father,  grant  me  grace 
to  submit  to  Thy  holy  will.  Thou  knowest 
what  discipline  I  need.  Thou  seest,  0  Lord, 
how  much  of  evil  there  is  in  my  heart, — what 
unbelief,  and  fear,  and  folly, — and  Thou  know- 
est what  is  needful  to  remove  them.  I  would 
desire,  good  Lord,  humbly  to  acquiesce  in  Thy 
doings,  believing  that  Thou  art  chastening  me 
for  my  profit.  I  would  bear  Thy  rod,  not 
merely  because  I  cannot  resist  it,  but  because  I 
love  and  trust  Thee.  I  would  sweetly  acquiesce 
and  rest  in  Thy  will,  as  well  as  bow  beneath  it, 
and  would  say,  "Good  is  the  word  of  the  Lord." 
I  would  take  gratefully  the  blessings  Thou  art 
pleased  to  send,  for  I  am  not  worthy  of  the  least 
of  them.  And  when  Thou  deniest  my  petition, 
and  withholdest  what  I  ask,  oh,  strengthen  me 
by  Thy  grace  to  wait  Thy  pleasure,  and  still  to 


IF  THE  LORD  WILL.  231 

trust  Thee,  assured  that  the  time  will  come 
when  I  shall  bless  Thee  even  for  unanswered 
prayers,  for  trials,  and  afflictions,  and  sorrows, 
which  I  would  fain  have  had  removed,  but 
which,  blessed  be  God,  were  made  the  means  of 
drawing  me  nearer  to  Thee. 

Hear  me,  0  Lord,  and  grant  me  Thy  blessing, 
for  my  dear  Kedeemer's  sake. — Amen. 


PSALM  XXV.  4. 

Thy  way,  not  mine,  0  Lord, 

However  dark  it  be ; 
Lead  me  by  Thine  own  hand, 

Choose  out  the  path  for  me. 

Smooth  let  it  be,  or  rough, 

It  will  be  still  the  best ; 
Winding  or  straight,  it  matters  not, 

It  leads  me  to  Thy  rest. 

I  dare  not  choose  my  lot ; 

I  would  not  if  I  might ; 
Choose  Thou  for  me,  my  God, 

So  shall  I  walk  aright. 


232  IF  THE  LORD  WILL. 

The  kingdom  that  I  seek 

Is  Thine  ;  so  let  the  way 
That  leads  to  it  be  Thine, 

Else  surely  I  shall  stray. 

Take  Thou  my  cup,  and  it 

With  joy  or  sorrow  fill, 
As  best  to  Thee  may  seem ; 

Choose  Thou  my  good  and  ill. 

Choose  Thou  for  me  my  friends, 
My  sickness,  or  my  health  ; 

Choose  Thou  my  cares  for  me, 
My  poverty,  or  wealth. 

Not  mine,  not  mine  the  choice, 
In  things,  or  great  or  small ; 

Be  Thou  my  Guide,  my  Strength, 
My  Wisdom,  and  my  All. 

BONAR. 


XV. 

qr\)t  §>toelttng  of  fortian. 


Jer.  xii.  5. 
H  How  wilt  thou  do  in  the  swelling  of  Jordan  ?  " 

No  Scripture  reader  can  have  failed  to  notice 
that  the  journeyings  of  the  children  of  Israel 
are  typical  of  the  Christian's  pilgrimage,  and 
the  promised  rest  in  Canaan  of  the  Christian's 
eternal  home.  Their  deliverance  from  Egypt, 
their  march  through  the  desert,  their  passage 
over  Jordan,  their  abode  in  Canaan — are  all 
points  of  resemblance,  tracing  out,  as  it  were, 
the  journey  from  this  world  of  sin  and  sorrow 
to  "  the  rest  which  remaineth  for  the  people  of 
God." 

In  the  words  before  us  one  interesting  point 
of  history  is  referred  to,  which  may  serve  to 
illustrate  an  important  and  solemn  stage  in  the 
Christian's  pilgrimage — viz.,  the  passage  over 
Jordan.  Let  us  meditate  for  a  little  on  this 
marvellous  event ;  and  may  God,  by  His  Holy 
Spirit,  enable  us  to  derive  comfort  from  the 
thoughts  suggested  regarding  our  heavenly 
home  I 


236    TEE  SWELLING  OF  JORDAN. 

Tlie  Jordan  lay  between  the  Israelites  and  the 
promised  land.  Doubtless,  as  they  stood  upon 
its  banks,  wistfully  gazing  across  its  swelling 
waves,  their  hearts  were  filled  with  gloom  and 
terror.  Three  days  they  rested  within  sight  of 
the  flowing  stream ;  no  promise — no  assurance 
of  help  was  vouchsafed.  Dark  and  cold,  the 
river  rolled  on  its  course,  and  ever  as  the  waves 
rose  and  heaved  and  broke  at  their  feet,  the 
question  would  arise  in  many  a  sinking  heart, 
"  How  shall  I  do  in  the  swelling  of  Jordan  ?  " 
It  was  only  when  summoned  to  cross — only 
when  the  hour  for  their  departure  had  come — 
that  Joshua  unfolded  to  them  the  wondrous 
way  in  which  the  Lord  intended  to  guide  and 
conduct  them  over.  "  It  shall  come  to  pass,  as 
soon  as  the  soles  of  the  feet  of  the  priests  that 
bear  the  ark  of  the  Lord,  the  Lord  of  all  the 
earth,  shall  rest  in  the  waters  of  Jordan,  that 
the  waters  of  Jordan  shall  be  cut  off  from  the 
waters  that  come  down  from  above ;  and  they 
shall  stand  upon  an  heap/' 

As  the  Jordan  lay  between  the  Israelites  and 
Canaan,  so  death  lies  between  the  Christian  and 
his  eternal  home.  It  is  oftentimes  an  object  of 
terror  even  to  the  holiest  and  the  best.     We  do 


THE  SWELLING  OF  JORDAN.    237 

not  love  death ;  we  fear  the  gloomy  passage ; 
our  faithless  hearts  shrink  at  the  prospect  of 
breasting  the  foaming  flood.  We  would  fain 
tarry  on  the  banks  of  the  stream,  unable  to  find 
an  answer  to  the  inquiry,  "  How  shall  I  do  in 
the  swelling  of  Jordan  ? "  Christian,  be  of 
good  courage ;  the  answer  will  come  in  God's 
good  time.  These  fears  will  then  vanish,  and, 
like  Israel  of  old,  you  will  safely  and  triumph- 
antly cross  the  rapid,  rising  flood. 

Mark  some  of  the  incidents  connected  with 
their  wondrous  passage.  The  ark  of  the  cove- 
nant was  with  them  ;  upborne  on  the  shoulders 
of  the  priests,  it  went  before,  and  led  the  march 
of  the  advancing  hosts.  So  is  it  with  the  Chris- 
tian :  Christ,  the  Ark  of  the  Covenant,  is  pre- 
sent in  the  hour  of  his  departure.  At  His  bid- 
ding the  dark  waters  will  divide, — they  will  rise 
up  on  either  side,  and  hold  back  every  onward- 
flowing  billow ;  until,  at  length,  the  once  timid, 
trembling,  fearful  believer,  stands,  with  a  joyful 
and  triumphant  heart,  upon  Immanuel's  bliss- 
ful shore.  Yes,  believer ;  never  has  a  solitary 
pilgrim  crossed  the  Jordan  unattended  by  the 
presence  of  Jesus.  He  watches  each  disciple 
with  intensest  interest.     He  keeps  His  eye  not 


238    TEE  SWELLING  OF  JORDAN. 

only  on  the  busy  scenes  of  life,  but  also  on  the 
secret  mysteries  of  death.  "  Precious  in  the 
sight  of  the  Lord  is  the  death  of  His  saints." 
Sweet,  comforting  thought !  Fear  not  to  go 
down  with  Him  into  the  dark  river;  it  may 
prove  boisterous  for  a  season, — its  waters  may 
be  cold  and  chilling  at  their  approach, — the 
waves  may  threaten  to  drown  you  ;  but  fear  not, 
He  will  be  with  you :  "  He  will  hold  you  by 
your  right  hand,  saying  unto  you,  Fear  not." 
Whatever  weakness  you  may  be  called  to  pass 
through,  He  will  be  "the  strength  of  your 
heart ; "  the  Almighty  Lord  will  be  with  you, 
and  strengthen  you, — you  will  see  His  smile, — 
you  will  hear  His  voice, — you  will  feel  His 
hand,  and  His  conscious  presence  will  enfold 
you  as  you  pass. 

We  are  further  told  that  all  the  people  passed 
clean  over.  None  were  left  behind — none  were 
swept  away  by  the  swelling  of  Jordan.  Neither 
shall  any  of  God's  true  Israel  be  lost  in  deaths 
devouring  flood.  Whatever  fears  may  have 
distressed  them, — whatever  doubts  may  have 
gathered  round  them  as  they  neared  the  brink 
of  the  stream, — they  shall  pass  over  in  safety, 
because  their  High  Priest  is  with  them,  and  He 


THE  SWELLING  OF  JORDAN.    239 

has  promised  to  conduct  them  to  the  heavenly 
Canaan. 

Sick  one,  dear  to  Christ !  art  thou  afraid  of 
death? — art  thou  inquiring  with  an  anxious 
heart,  "  How  shall  I  do  in  the  swelling  of 
Jordan?"  It  is  not  strange  to  he  thus  alarmed; 
others  have  experienced  the  same  painful  feel- 
ing. It  is  only  through  strong  faith  in  the  pro- 
mises of  God,  and  hope  in  the  infinite  merits  of 
our  Kedeemer,  that  we  can  look  on  death,  and 
overcome  those  terrors  which  the  most  perfect 
of  mortals  must  feel  at  putting  off  mortality. 
You  need  not  hlame  yourself  if  you  cannot  feel 
joy  in  quitting  this  world.  Human  nature  can- 
not be  perfected  in  this  life;  it  is  well  if  you  are 
resigned  to  the  will  of  God,  without  murmuring 
or  repining,  when  He  is  pleased  to  call  for  you. 
Death  is  to  the  best  an  awful  summons,  and 
human  nature  turns  from  the  gloomy  passage. 
It  is  also  a  mournful  thought  to  be  separated 
from  those  whom  we  love  most  dearly, — to  leave 
them  amid  the  sorrows  of  a  sinful  world, — to 
leave  them  struggling  with  all  the  difficulties, 
the  hardships,  and  the  dangers  that  attend  a 
Christian  in  his  journey  through  the  wilderness, 
— and  no  more  to  see  their  faces — no  more  to 


240    THE  SWELLING  OF  JORDAN. 

hear  their  voices  till  they  too  shall  have  passed 
through  the  river  of  death. 

But  surely,  Christian,  you  may  be  comforted 
by  the  thought,  that  a  safe  and  triumphant  pas- 
sage is  insured  to  the  weakest  of  Christ's  fol- 
lowers. "  They  shall  never  perish."  This  is 
the  assurance  of  "  the  faithful  Promiser."  It  is 
not  life,  and  it  is  not  death,  which  shall  separate 
you  from  your  Saviour-God.  Because  He  lives, 
ye  shall  live  also ;  where  He  is,  there  shall  ye 
be  also.  Fear  not  the  swelling  tide.  All  is  in 
the  Lord's  hands,  and  He  will  divide  the  foam- 
ing billows,  and  take  you  dry-shod  over,  and 
not  a  heaving,  not  an  undulation  of  the  cold 
waters  shall  chill  the  warmth,  or  ruffle  the  calm- 
ness of  your  breast.  Let  this  be  the  language 
of  your  soul,  "  Saviour-God,  my  trust  is  in  Thee. 
I  will  cleave  to  Thee  closer  and  closer.  As  the 
water  deepens,  I  will  plant  my  foot  of  faith 
firmer  and  firmer  upon  the  Kock,  until  I  find 
myself  in  glory." 

Yes,  believer,  in  glory, — away  from  doubts 
and  fears  and  anxieties, — away  from  besetting 
sins, — away  from  pain  and  weariness  and  toil, 
— with  Him  whom  your  soul  loves, — with  Him 
who  gave  His  life's  blood  to  redeem  you, — with 


THE  SWELLING  OF  JORDAN.    241 

Hiin  who  led  you  on  your  earthly  pilgrimage, — 
with  Him  who  brought  you  to  the  brink  of 
Jordan's  stream,  and  gave  you  faint  glimpses  of 
the  heavenly  Canaan, — with  Him  who,  when 
the  billows  began  to  heave  and  swell  on  either 
side,  and  your  heart  trembled  with  fear,  whis- 
pered these  words,  "  Fear  not,  I  am  still  with 
thee.  When  thou  passest  through  the  waters 
I  will  be  with  thee ;  and  through  the  floods, 
they  shall  not  overflow.  I  will  not  leave  thee 
nor  forsake  thee/' 

Heavenly  Father,  I  beseech  Thee,  grant  that 
when  the  time  of  my  departure  shall  come,  I 
may  be  found  prepared.  May  I  be  enabled  to 
feel  that,  though  my  heart  and  my  flesh  fail, 
yet  that  Thou  art  the  strength  of  my  heart,  and 
my  portion  for  ever.  0  blessed  Jesus  !  who  didst 
go  to  prepare  a  place  for  Thine  own  people  in 
Thy  Father's  house, — Thou  who  hast  strength- 
ened and  supported  many  a  dying  Christian 
while  amid  the  swellings  of  Jordan,  support  and 
uphold  me.  Let  not  my  faith  fail ;  let  not  my 
hope  waver.  Enable  me  to  look  forward  to  the 
solemn  hour  of  my  departure  with  meek  and 
humble  confidence,  trusting  only  in  the  merits 

Q 


242    THE  SWELLING  OF  JORDAN. 

of  my  gracious  Lord  and  Saviour,  and  relying 
so  much  on  His  promised  grace,  that  the  last 
hours  of  my  life  may  be  those  of  peace,  and  hope, 
find  joy.  0  gracious  God,  pardon  and  accept 
me  for  the  sake  of  Jesus  Christ. — Amen. 


"  My  times  are  in  thy  hand." — Ps.  xxxi.  15. 

Our  times  are  in  Thy  hand  ; 

0  God,  we  wish  them  there ; 
Our  life,  our  friends,  our  souls,  we  leave 

Entirely  to  Thy  care. 

Our  times  are  in  Thy  hand, 

Whatever  they  may  be — 
Pleasing  or  painful,  dark  or  bright, 

As  best  may  seem  to  Thee. 

Our  times  are  in  Thy  hand ; 

Why  should  we  doubt  or  fear  ? 
A  Father's  hand  will  never  cause 

His  child  a  needless  tear. 

Our  times  are  in  Thy  hand, 

Jesus  the  Crucified ! 
The  hand  our  many  sins  have  pierced 

Is  now  our  guard  and  guide. 


THE  SWELLING  OF  JORDAN,    243 

Our  times  are  in  Thy  hand ; 

We  '11  always  trust  in  Thee, 
Till  we  have  left  this  weary  land, 

And  all  Thy  glory  see. 


"  0  death,  where  is  thy  sting  ?" — 1  Cor.  xv.  55. 

Why  that  sigh,  my  soul,  at  parting 

From  a  world  so  cold  as  this  ? 
Why  those  silent  tear-drops  starting, 

Standing  at  the  gates  of  bliss  ? 
Soon  the  struggle  shall  be  ended, 

Jordan's  swellings  soon  be  past, 
And  these  fears — a  while  suspended — 

Lose  themselves  in  heaven  at  last. 

What  is  death  ? — to  sleep  in  Jesus, 

When  this  weary  strife  is  o'er  ; 
And  to  sorrows,  sins,  diseases, 

Never  to  awaken  more  ! 
Safe  from  every  care  and  angaish, 

Leaning  on  the  Saviour's  breast — 
"  Where  the  wicked  cease  from  troubling, 

And  the  weary  are  at  rest !  " 

Parish  Musings. 


244     THE  SWELLING  OF  JORDAN. 

'  They  that  sow  in  tears  shall  reap  in  joy." — Ps.  cxxvi.  5. 

Brief  life  is  here  our  portion, 
Brief  sorrow,  short-lived  care  ; 

The  life  that  knows  no  ending — 
The  tearless  life  is  there. 

0  happy  retribution, 

Short  toil,  eternal  rest ! 
For  mortals,  and  for  sinners, 

A  mansion  with  the  blest ! 

And  now  we  fight  the  battle, 
And  then  we  wear  the  crown 

Of  full  and  everlasting 
And  passionless  renown. 

'Midst  power  that  knows  no  limit, 
And  wisdom  free  from  bound, 

The  beatific  vision 

Shall  glad  the  saints  around. 

There  God,  our  King  and  portion, 

In  fulness  of  His  grace, 
Shall  we  behold  for  ever, 

And  worship  face  to  face  ! 

Hymnal. 


THE  SWELLING  OF  JORDAN.    245 

My  task  is  o'er,  my  work  is  done, 

And  spent  the  weary  day ; 
I  Ve  fought  the  fight — the  battle's  won, 

And  I  must  haste  away  ; 
Henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for  me 
A  crown,  through  all  eternity  1 

A  crown  by  hands  eternal  wove, 

Meet  for  a  child  of  God — 
Gemm'd  with  the  jewels  of  His  love, 

And  purchased  by  His  blood  : 
Winch  human  hands  could  ne'er  have 

wrought, 
And  human  merit  ne'er  have  bought. 

Farewell  the  cross  'neath  which  so  long 

I  Ve  watch'd  and  fought  below  ; 
And  welcome  now  the  harp  and  song 

That  wait  me  where  I  go ; 
Yet,  oh,  that  cross  must  still  be  dear, 
Though  borne  through  many  a  sorrow 
here  I 

And  oft  throughout  eternity, 
'Mid  all  that 's  bright  and  blest, 


246     THE  SWELLING  OF  JORDAN. 

Its  victory  my  joy  shall  be, 

And  I  will  love  it  best ; 
For  'twas  through  Him  who  died  thereon 
My  fight  was  fought — my  battle  won ! 

Parish  Musings. 


XVI. 

bearing  JFruft. 


John  xv.  8. 
"  Herein  is  my  Father  glorified,  that  ye  bear  much  fruit." 

In  regard  to  the  sphere  of  Christian  duty  and 
usefulness,  there  is  no  mistake  we  more  fre- 
quently commit,  than  in  supposing,  when  God 
is  pleased  to  lay  His  chastening  hand  on  one  of 
His  children,  that  he  "is  laid  aside," — removed 
from  his  "  post,"  and,  for  the  time,  nearly  alto- 
gether useless  and  unprofitable. 

We  can  at  once  believe  in  the  exertion,  the 
energy,  and  endurance  of  the  missionary  who 
goes  forth  to  heathen  lands,  that,  amid  suffer- 
ing, privation,  and  toil,  he  may  disseminate  the 
truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus,  and  advance  the  cause 
and  kingdom  of  his  Kedeemer.  We  give  our 
hearty  admiration  to  the  man  who  devotes 
himself  to  some  scheme  of  benevolence, — who 
labours  on  year  after  year  in  furthering  the 
object  on  which  his  heart  is  set.  We  accord 
our  willing  tribute  of  praise  to  him  who  seeks 
to  ameliorate  the  condition  of  the  poor, — to  in- 
struct and  reclaim  the  ignorant  and  wretched 


250  BEARING  FRUIT. 

dwellers  in  our  lanes  and  alleys, — or  to  gather 
in  the  wandering  outcasts  on  our  streets  to 
the  house  of  God,  where  they  may  hear  of 
pardon  and  peace  through  the  precious  blood 
of  Christ. 

These,  and  such  as  these,  are  held,  -and 
worthily  held,  in  admiration.  Their  names  are 
honoured,  and  become  as  "  household  words." 
But  how  many  of  God's  dear  children  are 
bearing  heavier  burdens,  discharging  more 
painful  duties,  and  displaying  more  vigorous 
faith,  in  the  retirement  of  private  life,  or  in  the 
chamber  of  sickness  and  trial.  God  is  "  glori- 
fied "  as  well  in  suffering  as  in  doing, — in  the 
patient  endurance,  as  well  as  in  the  vigorous 
'performance  of  His  will.  There  is  even  a 
stronger  testimony  given  to  the  power  and 
efficacy  of  Christ's  religion  in  the  unmurmur- 
ing life  of  some  tried  and  suffering  disciple, 
than  in  the  bold  and  courageous  efforts  of  him 
who,  against  rage  and  opposition,  carries  the 
words  of  the  everlasting  gospel  from  shore  to 
shore, — who  dreads  not  the  burning  sands  of 
the  desert,  or  the  frozen  mountains  of  the  north, 
— but  with  ever-increasing  energy  presses  on, 
that  he  may  plant  the  Kose  of  Sharon  in  the 


BEARING  FRUIT.  251 

desert  wild,  and  rear  the  standard  of  the  cross 
amid  savage  and  heathen  tribes.  The  former 
may  tread  his  path  of  suffering  unnoticed  and 
uncheered  by  man,  whilst  the  latter  may  be 
animated  to  almost  superhuman  efforts  by  the 
inspiring  plaudits  of  thousands  who  are  watch- 
ing his  progress.  But  other  eyes  are  fixed  upon 
the  solitary  pilgrim,  whose  every  step  in  his 
heavenward  journey  is  marked  with  blood, — 
who,  in  the  loneliness  of  the  midnight  hour, 
when  sleep  refuses  to  seal  up  his  eyelids,  "  com- 
munes with  his  own  heart  upon  his  bed,  and  is 
still"  Angels,  we  believe,  from  the  heights  of 
glory,  and  ransomed  spirits,  sent  to  minister  to 
the  heirs  of  salvation,  circle  around  that  solitary 
one,  and  rejoice  in  being  commissioned  to  bear 
glad  tidings — tidings  of  peace,  and  comfort, 
and  hope,  and  joy — to  that  troubled  and  wearied 
disciple. 

But  while  all  this  is  true,  alas !  is  it  not  also 
true  that  ive  have  failed  in  the  past  thus  to 
glorify  our  heavenly  Father  by  bearing  "  much 
fruit  ?"  How  little  have  we  brought  forth  com- 
pared with  what  we  might  have  done  !  If  we 
look  backward  on  the  days  and  years  that  are 
gone, — and  on  the  various  dealings  of  God  in 


252  BEARING  FRUIT. 

providence  and  grace,  may  we  not  say  "  we  are 
unprofitable  servants  ?  " 

What  fruit  did  we  bear  whilst  enjoying  the 
means  of  grace  and  listening  to  the  gracious  in- 
vitations and  promises  of  the  gospel  ?  Did  we 
gladly  receive  them  into  our  hearts  and  embrace 
the  overtures  of  mercy  ?  Did  we,  as  weary  and 
heavy-laden  sinners  lay  the  burden  of  our  sins 
at  the  foot  of  the  Cross, — did  we,  as  faint  and 
thirsty  travellers  joyfully  welcome  and  partake 
of  the  living  water  ?  Or  rather,  did  we  not  turn 
away  from  the  door  opened  to  admit  us, — from 
the  Saviour  longing  to  make  us  His  own,  and 
from  the  Spirit  whose  influences  were  promised 
to  purify,  uphold,  and  strengthen  us  ?  Perhaps, 
with  some  of  us,  it  was  only  after  years  of  ob- 
stinacy and  unbelief, — years  of  privilege,  long- 
suffering,  and  forbearance,  on  the  part  of  God, 
that  our  hearts  were  softened,  our  wills  subdued, 
and  the  old  man  crucified  within  us.  And  these 
years,  in  which  we  might  have  lived  for  God 
and  not  for  the  world, — in  which  we  might  have 
enjoyed  fellowship  and  communion  with  Jesus 
— in  which  we  might  have  put  forth  our  energies 
for  the  advancement  of  truth  and  holiness, — all 


BEARING  FRUIT.  253 

have  been  wasted  and  have  born  no  fruit  to  the 
glory  of  God. 

Has  it  been  otherwise  with  us  under  the 
chastening  hand  of  our  heavenly  Father  ?  In 
love  to  our  souls  He  robbed  us  of  some  cherished 
idol,  and  gave  us  to  drink  the  cup  of  sorrow. 
That  heart  which  He  had  claimed  for  Himself 
and  on  whose  throne  He  would  permit  no  rival, 
had  become  estranged, — its  tendrils  had  en- 
twined themselves  around  some  earthly  prop, 
and  He  cut  it  down  with  His  own  loving,  faith- 
ful hand,  in  order  that  they  might  grow  up,  and 
cling  to  Him  alone  for  support.  In  such  an 
hour  did  we  humbly  and  submissively  acquiesce 
in  the  will  of  God  ? — did  we  acknowledge  that 
"  in  very  faithfulness  "  He  had  afflicted  us,  and 
pray  that  He  would  sanctify  our  trial?"  Or 
rather,  did  we  give  way  to  impatience,  despon- 
dency, and  gloom — rebelling  against  our  Father's 
will — refusing  to  be  comforted,  and  saying  in 
bitterness  of  spirit,  "  all  these  things  are  against 
me  f  Ah,  if  such  has  been  our  conduct,  how 
have  we  failed  to  "  glorify  "  God, — how  miser- 
able the  return  for  all  His  grace  and  goodness 
and  mercy  ? 


254  BEARING  FRUIT. 

So  likewise  in  the  time  of  personal  sickness 
and  infirmity.  God  has  withdrawn  us  from  the 
world,  that,  in  the  solitariness  of  the  sick-room, 
we  may  listen  undisturbed  to  His  voice,  and 
amid  pain,  suffering,  and  distress,  still  exercise 
an  unfaltering  faith  in  His  love, — and  in 
"  patience  possess  our  souls/'  He  would  have 
us  trust  Him  then  as  firmly  as  in  the  day  of 
health, — He  would  have  us  believe  then  that  He 
seeks  our  well-being,  as  heartily  and  truly  as 
when  our  souls  were  filled  with  gladness,  and 
we  could  not  but  extol  His  bounty  and  love. 
Have  we  done  this  ?  Have  we  said  to  ourselves, 
"  Good  is  the  will  of  the  Lord, — this  sickness 
was  needed, — He  is  chastening  me  for  my  pro- 
fit, He  is  calling  me  to  set  my  affections  on 
things  above,  not  on  things  on  the  earth.  In 
health,  how  slow  the  progress  I  was  making 
heavenward  ! — how  seldom  were  my  thoughts 
directed  towards  heaven  and  eternity  ! — how 
little  did  I  know  of  conformity  to  the  sufferings 
of  Christ,  and  of  having  the  same  mind  in  me. 
Now,  0  my  Father,  since  Thou  hast  called  me  to 
the  endurance  of  pain  and  suffering,  strengthen 
me  to  submit  without  murmuring  or  impatience. 
Give  me  to  realise  the  mercy  of  Thy  dispensa- 


BEARING  FRUIT.  255 

tions,  and  the  advantages  of  a  bed  of  sickness. 
Help  me  to  improve  the  means  which  Thou  art 
employing  for  turning  my  thoughts  towards 
Thee.  Oh  !  grant  me  grace  to  lay  hold  on  those 
promises  which  are  set  before  me,  and  now  that 
earthly  health  and  strength  have  failed,  may  I 
place  more  simple  and  entire  confidence  in 
Thee.  Keep  me  from  all  repining  thoughts, 
and  in  remembrance  of  Thy  past  loving-kind- 
ness, help  me  now  to  trust  in  Thy  goodness,  and 
to  submit  to  Thy  will."  Where  such  thoughts 
have  occupied, — where  such  prayers  have  risen 
from  the  heart,  there  will  assuredly  be  "  fruit  " 
to  the  glory  of  God.  There  will  be  the  fruit  of 
holy  living, — of  more  unreserved  consecration  to 
the  service  of  Christ, — of  a  deeper  devotion,' — a 
more  heartfelt  penitence, — a  more  humble  sub- 
mission. The  time  of  sickness  will  be  the  means 
of  strengthening  faith, — inflaming  love,  and 
increasing  zeal.  It  will  teach  the  believer  the 
true  end  he  should  have  in  life, — to  glorify  God 
that  he  may  enjoy  Him  for  ever.  And  not  only 
will  his  own  soul  prosper  and  be  in  health,  but 
his  trust,  and  hope,  and  confidence  in  God,  under 
the  pressure  of  sickness,  will  speak  forcibly  to 
those  around  him.     There  will  be  a  silent  yet 


256  BEARING  FRUIT. 

powerful  eloquence  in  his  weakness  and  infir- 
mity, and  it  may  be  his  blessed  privilege  to  sow 
the  seeds  of  goodness,  of  love  to  God  and  Christ, 
of  holiness  and  happiness,  in  the  hearts  of  many 
who,  in  the  the  great  day,  shall  be  to  him  "  a 
joy  and  crown  of  rejoicing/' 

Reader !  are  you  striving  to  "  glorify "  your 
Father  in  heaven  by  "bearing  much  fruit?" 
You  may  imagine,  that  as  day  by  day  glides 
tranquilly  on, — unmarked  by  vicissitude,  and 
unruffled  by  the  storm,  there  is  scarcely  any 
opportunity  afforded  you.  It  is  not  so.  Every 
believer  has  some  way  in  which  he  may  "  bear 
fruit "  to  the  glory  of  God.  Are  you  prosper- 
ous ?  You  may  "  bear  the  fruit "  of  gratitude 
and  praise.  Are  you  surrounded  by  loving 
friends,  cheered  and  gladdened  by  the  inter- 
course of  kindly  hearts  ?  You  may  "  bear  the 
fruit "  of  thankfulness  to  Him,  who  has  the 
hearts  of  all  men  in  His  hands.  Do  you  occupy 
a  station  of  honour  and  responsibility?  You 
may  "bear  fruit "  by  looking  ever  to  God  for 
guidance  and  direction, — for  strength  to  dis- 
charge your  duties  faithfully,  and  grace  to  bear 
your  honours  humbly. 

But  few,  if  any  there  are,  who  are  without 


BEARING  FRUIT.  257 

daily  cares  and  crosses, — in  enduring  which 
there  is  need  for  patience  and  self-deniaL 
Herein,  too,  God  may  be  glorified.  Do  you 
suffer  from  coldness  or  aeglect  ?  Manifest  the 
fruit  of  forgiveness.  Are  you  exposed  to  attacks 
from  the  tongue  of  envy  or  malice?  Eeturn 
not  railing  for  railing,  but  leave  it  with  God  to 
maintain  your  cause.  Have  you  suffered  from 
injustice  and  oppression  ?  Make  your  complaint 
to  Him  who  will  defend  the  right,  and  ask  His 
counsel  and  guidance.  Whatever  be  your  daily 
cross  or  trial, — whatever  the  fear  which  disturbs, 
— the  danger  which  threatens, — the  care  which 
harasses, — or  the  grief  which  weighs  down  the 
spirit,  let  your  aim  and  desire  ever  be,  to 
"glorify"  your  heavenly  Father, — whether  by 
doing  or  by  suffering.  Kemember  that  the 
fruit  which  you  have  to  bear,  is  the  fruit  of  the 
spirit,  which  is  "  love,  joy,  peace,  long-suffering, 
gentleness,  goodness,  faith,  meekness,  temper- 
ance/' "  Wherefore,  my  beloved  brethren,  be 
ye  steadfast,  immoveable,  always  abounding  in 
the  work  of  the  Lord  " — even  in  sickness,  afflic- 
tion, and  trouble  doing  this,  "  in  your  patience 
possessing  your  souls "  — "  forasmuch  as  ye 
know  that  neither  labour  nor  sorrow  can  be 


258  BEARING  FRUIT. 

in  vain  in  the  Lord."  "  In  everything,  by 
prayer  and  supplication,  with  thanksgiving,  let 
your  requests  be  made  known  unto  God ;  and 
the  peace  of  God,  which  passeth  all  understand- 
ing, shall  keep  your  hearts  and  minds  through 
Christ  Jesus." 

Thus  living,  a  daily  suppliant  at  Mercys 
gate,  you  will  obtain  grace  equal  to  your  day, — 
grace  to  honour  your  Divine  Master, — grace  to 
manifest  the  power  of  a  living  faith, — grace  to 
endure  as  seeing  Him  who  is  invisible, — grace 
to  be  faithful  unto  death,  and,  through  the 
merits  of  Christ,  to  receive  the  crown  of  life. 

"  Who  would  be  God's,  must  trust,  not  see, 

Not  murmur,  fear,  demand : 
Must  ivliolly  by  Him  guided  be, 

Lost  in  that  loving  Hand : 
Must  turn  where'er  He  leads,  nor  say, 
'Whither,  oh,  whither,  points  the  way?'" 

Father  of  mercies,  and  God  of  all  comfort, 
who  dost  not  willingly  afflict  the  children  of 
men,  but  dost  rebuke  and  chasten  those  whom 
Thou  lovest,  look  down  upon  me,  Thine  un- 
worthy servant,  and  have  mercy  upon  me,  for 


BEARING  FRUIT.  '259 

Christ's  sake.  Enable  me,  0  God,  amid  all 
"my  pains  and  sufferings,  to  recognise  Thy 
fatherly  hand,  and  to  feel  assured  that  Thou 
wilt  make  them  means  of  good,  and  sources  of 
blessing  to  my  soul.  I  acknowledge,  0  God, 
that  I  have  grievously  sinned  against  Thee,  and 
merit  only  Thy  hot  displeasure.  But  for  the 
sake  of  Thy  dear  Son,  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
who  gave  Himself  a  sacrifice  for  sin,  and  who 
now  pleads  at  Thy  right  band,  do  Thou,  Lord 
God,  bave  mercy  upon  me,  and  forgive  all  mine 
iniquities. 

And  grant,  heavenly  Father,  if  it  please  Thee, 
that  botb  my  soul  may  be  bealed  of  the  dread- 
ful malady  of  sin,  and  my  body  renewed  with 
health,  that  I  may  devote  the  life  Thou  sparest 
to  Thy  service,  and  to  the  good  of  my  fellow- 
creatures. 

Whatever  Thou  art  pleased  to  give  or  with- 
hold, oh,  pour  upon  me  the  rich  gift  of  Thy 
Holy  Spirit !  Through  His  indwelling  may  I 
be  enabled  to  bring  forth  fruit  to  Thy  glory. 
Make  me  patient,  humble,  and  resigned.  Grant 
that  no  pain  may  ever  tempt  me  to  murmur,  or 
to  doubt  Thy  fatherly  goodness.  Assist  me,  0 
God,  to  cherish  penitent,  believing,  and  serious 


260  BEARING  FRUIT. 

thoughts  and  affections,  and  such  meekness  and 
patience  as  my  Divine  Master  manifested  whilst 
He  was  a  sufferer  on  earth.  Help  me,  by  Thy 
Holy  Spirit,  so  to  meditate  on  Thy  mercies  in 
Christ  Jesus,  that,  in  the  midst  of  all  my  weari- 
ness and  pains,  Thy  comforts  may  refresh  my 
soul! 

Blessed  Jesus,  be  Thou  my  refuge  and 
strength,  a  very  present  help  in  time  of  trouble. 
Thou,  0  merciful  Lord,  hast  said  that  in  all  our 
afflictions  Thou  art  afflicted.  May  I  realise 
Thy  sympathy  with  me.  May  the  remembrance 
of  Thy  sufferings  check  every  murmur,  and 
soothe  every  pain.  Lord,  enable  me,  whether 
in  sickness  or  in  health,  to  glorify  Thy  holy 
name.  Do  with  me  what  is  good  in  Thy  sight. 
Let  patience  have  her  perfect  work.  If  this 
sickness  be  unto  death,  oh,  prepare  me  for  it, 
that  I  may  depart  only  to  be  with  Thee. 
Whether  in  life  or  in  death,  may  I  still  live  in 
Thy  presence.  And  to  Thy  name,  Father, 
Son,  and  Holy  Ghost,  be  ascribed  all  glory  and 
praise,  world  without  end! — Amen. 


BEARING  FRUIT.  261 


THE  HARVEST  HOME. 

From  the  far-off  fields  of  earthly  toil, 

A  goodly  host  they  come, 
And  sounds  of  music  are  on  the  air, — 

'Tis  the  song  of  the  "  Harvest  Home." 
The  weariness  and  the  weeping, — 

The  darkness  has  all  pass'd  by, 
And  a  glorious  Sun  has  risen, 

The  Sun  of  eternity  1 

We  Ve  seen  those  faces  in  days  of  yore, 
When  the  dust  was  on  their  brow, 

And  the  scalding  tear  upon  their  cheek- 
Let  us  look  on  the  labourers  now  ! 

We  think  of  the  life-long  sorrow, 
And  the  wilderness-days  of  care  ; 

We  try  to  trace  the  tear-drops, 
But  no  furrows  of  grief  are  there. 

There 's  a  mystery  of  soul-chasten'd  joy, 

Lit  up  with  sunlight  hues  ; 
Like  morning  flowers,  most  beautiful 

When  wet  with  midnight  dews. 


262  BEARING  FRUIT. 

There  are  depths  of  earnest  meaning 

In  each  true  and  trustful  gaze, 
Telling  of  wondrous  lessons 

Learnt  in  their  pilgrim-days, 

And  a  conscious  confidence  of  bliss. 

That  shall  never  again  remove, — 
All  the  faith  and  hope  of  journeying  years 

Gathered  up  in  that  look  of  love. 
The  long  waiting  days  are  over, 

They  Ve  received  their  wages  now ; 
For  they've  gazed  upon  their  Master, 

And  His  name  is  on  their  brow. 

They  Ve  seen  the  safely-garner'd  sheaves, 

And  the  song  has  been  passing  sweet 
Which  welcomed  the  last  in-coming  one, 

Laid  down  at  the  Saviour's  feet. 
Ah  !  well  does  His  heart  remember, 

As  those  notes  of  praise  sweep  by, 
The  yearning,  plaintive  music 

Of  earth's  sadder  minstrelsy. 

And  well  does  He  know  each  chequer'd  tale. 
As  He  looks  on  the  joyous  band, — 

All  the  lights  and  shadows  that  cross'd  their  path 
In  the  distant  pilgrim-land  ! 


BEARING  FRUIT.  263 

The  heart's  unspoken  anguish, 

The  bitter  sighs  and  tears, 
The  long,  long  hours  of  watching, 

The  changeful  hopes  and  fears. 

One  had  climb'd  the  rugged  mountain-side, 

'Twas  a  bleak  and  wintry  day, 
The  tempest  had  scattered  his  precious  seed, 

And  he  wept  as  he  turn'd  away. 
But  a  stranger-hand  had  watered 

That  seed  on  a  distant  shore, 
And  the  labourers  now  are  meeting 

"Who  had  never  met  before. 

And  one, — he  had  toil'd  amid  burning  sands, 

When  the  scorching  sun  was  high  ; 
He  had  grasp'd  the  plough  with  a  fever' d  hand, 

And  then  laid  him  down  to  die: 
But  another,  and  yet  another, 

Had  fill'd  that  deserted  field, 
Nor  vainly  the  seed  they  scatter  d 

Where  a  brother's  hand  had  till'd. 

Some  with  eager  step  went  boldly  forth, 

Broadcasting  over  the  land, 
Some  water'd  the  scarcely  budding  blade 

With  a  tender  and  gentle  hand. 


264  BEARING  FRUIT. 

There 's  one, — her  young  life  was  blighted 

By  the  withering  touch  of  woe  ; 
Her  days  were  sad  and  lonely, 

And  she  never  went  forth  to  sow. 

But  there  rose  from  her  lowly  couch  of  pain 

The  fervent,  pleading  prayer  ; 
She  looks  on  many  a  radiant  brow, 

And  she  reads  the  answer  there  ! 
Yes  !  sowers  and  reapers  are  meeting, 

A  goodly  host  they  come  1 
Will  you  join  the  echoing  chorus  ? — 

Tis  the  song  of  the  "  Harvest  Home  1 " 

C.  R 


XVII. 

Cijrfettan  f  oj>* 


Jomr  xvi.  22. 
"  Your  joy  no  man  taketh  from  you." 

These  precious  words  were  uttered  by  our 
blessed  Saviour  at  a  most  eventful  period  of 
His  history.  It  was  the  night  of  His  betrayal. 
For  the  eighth  time  He  had  repeated  the  story 
of  His  coming  sufferings.  With  deep  and  af- 
fecting solemnity,  He  had  instituted  the  me- 
morial of  His  death  and  passion;  and,  slowly 
and  sadly,  He  drew  up  the  curtain  which  was 
to  reveal  to  the  sorrowing  disciples  the  things 
which  were  soon  to  come  upon  them. 

Sorrow  and  anxiety  filled  the  hearts  of  all  in 
that  lonely  upper  room.  He  that  had  "  received 
the  sop"  had  gone  out,  and  was  already  com- 
muning with  the  Saviour's  murderers ;  for  it 
was  at  length  "their  hour  and  the  power  of 
darkness."  But  even  then,  when  the  tide  of 
anticipated  suffering  and  sorrow  was  rushing  in 
upon  His  own  soul — when  He  was  hemmed  in 
on  every  side  by  the  malice  of  His  enemies — 
and  there  was  now  only  the  brook  Cedron  be- 


268  CHRISTIAN  JOY. 

tween  Him  and  the  awful  anguish  of  Gethse- 
mane— our  Lord  thought  not  of  Himself,  but  of 
those  trembling  followers  whom  He  was  so  soon 
to  leave  in  a  dark  and  desolate  world,  full  of 
sorrows,  perplexities,  and  cares. 

He  comforts  them  by  many  gracious  pro- 
mises, and  bids  them  be  of  good  cheer.  It  must 
needs  be  that  He  should  now  depart.  The  Holy 
Grhost,  in  mysterious  silence,  awaited  the  signal 
of  His  return  in  the  courts  of  heaven,  and  must 
await.  "If  I  go  not  away,  the  Comforter  will 
not  come  unto  you ;  but  if  I  go  away,  I  will 
send  him  unto  you." 

And  whilst  predicting  their  future  sufferings, 
He  promises  a  season  of  great  and  permanent 
joy.  "  Now,  therefore,"  He  says,  "  ye  have 
sorrow" — the  season  of  suffering  to  you  is  at 
hand ;  ye  shall  have  sorrow,  deep  sorrow,  dur- 
ing the  short  period  of  your  not  seeing  Me; 
"  but  I  will  see  you  again,  and  your  heart  shall 
rejoice,  and  your  joy  no  man  taketh  from  you." 

Christian,  see  in  all  this  the  love,  the  tender- 
ness, the  care  of  Jesus !  We  might  have  ex- 
pected that  His  own  anticipated  sorrows  would 
alone,  at  such  a  time,  have  occupied  His  mind 
— that  the  dark  vista  through  which  He  was  to 


CHRISTIAN  JOT.  269 

pass  would  have  concentrated  His  every  thought, 
and  served  to  exclude  all  efforts  to  soothe  or 
mitigate  the  sorrows  of  others.  But  no !  Fully 
aware  of  the  tremendous  responsibilities  of  His 
situation — feeling  the  weight  of  the  load  laid 
upon  Him,  the  bitterness  of  the  cup  given  Him 
to  drink— and  anticipating,  as  certain  and  just 
at  hand,  a  heavier  pressure  and  a  bitterer 
draught — He  still  evinced  as  deep  an  interest  in 
the  anxieties  and  perplexities,  in  the  fears  and 
sorrows  of  the  disciples,  as  if  He  himself  had 
not  been  a  sufferer. 

He  knew  how  they  were  troubled,  and  what 
anxious,  desponding,  despairing  thoughts  were 
arising  in  their  minds,  and  He  could  not  but  be 
"  touched  with  a  feeling  of  their  infirmities/' 
The  weight  of  anguish  which  overwhelmed  His 
soul,  no  being  in  the  wide  universe  could  bear 
along  with  Him.  He  could  not  have  the  alie- 
nation of  human  sympathy.  He  must  tread 
the  wine-press  alone.  He  must  encounter  the 
enemy,  bear  his  assaults,  and  overcome  alone. 
They  could  not  enter  into  His  sorrows,  or  aid 
Him  in  the  coming  struggle ;  but  He — the  ge- 
nerous, self-denying,  magnanimous  One — could 
fully  enter  into  theirs.     There  was  room  in  His 


270  CHRISTIAN  JOY, 

large  heart  for  their  sorrows,  as  well  as  His  own 
He  feels  their  griefs  as  if  thej  were  His  own, 
and  kindly  comforts  those  who,  He  knew,  were 
about  to  desert  Him  in  the  hour  of  His  deepest 
sorrow. 

And  soon  was  the  gracious  promise  made  good 
in  the  experience  of  the  disciples.  The  Saviour 
did,  indeed,  come  to  see  them  again,  and  their 
hearts  poured  themselves  out  in  one  gush,  "  The 
Lord  is  risen  indeed,"  as  if  all  was  summed  up 
in  that.  Then  their  only  difficulty  was  that 
their  hearts  were  only  too  narrow  for  the  great- 
ness of  their  joy — they  "  believed  not  for  joy 
and  wonder ;"  and  this  "joy  no  man  could  take 
from  them." 

All  the  malice  of  their  enemies, — all  the 
cruelties  and  sufferings  they  might  have  to 
bear, — all  the  pains  and  persecutions  which  lay 
before  them  in  the  journey  of  life,  could  not 
rob  them  of  that  inward  joy  which  was  the  true 
treasure  of  their  hearts.  The  Saviour — true, 
loving,  faithful — was,  though  unseen,  ever  nigh 
to  them.  In  the  gloom  of  the  prisoner's  cell, 
or  in  the  solitariness  of  the  desert,  —  when 
arraigned  before  an  unrighteous  tribunal,  or 
amid  the  flames  of  martyrdom,  they  had  Him 


CHRISTIAN  JOY.  271 

ever  by  their  side — cheering,  comforting,  ani- 
mating them  by  His  own  Spirit.  As  days  and 
fears  rolled  on, — as  they  entered  into  closer 
ad  more  intimate  communion  with  their  Lord, 
— revealing  to  Him  their  cares  and  sorrows, — 
drinking  in  more  largely  of  His  grace  and  spirit, 
— sheltering  themselves  from  the  rude  blasts  of 
persecution  and  the  fury  of  their  enemies,  in 
His  loving  bosom, — they  realised  this  joy  more 
and  more,  they  "rejoiced,  inasmuch  as  they 
were  partakers  of  Christ's  sufferings ;  knowing 
that  when  His  glory  shall  be  revealed,  they  shall 
be  glad  also  with  exceeding  joy." 

Hear  the  language  of  the  apostle :  "I  am 
filled  with  comfort.  I  am  exceeding  joyful  in 
all  our  tribulation."  "  Yea,  and  if  I  be  offered 
upon  the  sacrifice  and  service  of  your  faith, 
I  joy,  and  rejoice  with  you  all."  "And  not 
only  so,  but  we  also  joy  in  God,  through  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  by  whom  we  have  now 
received  the  atonement."  "  Therefore,  brethren, 
we  were  comforted  over  you,  in  all  our  affliction 
and  distress  by  your  faith:  For  now  we  live, 
if  ye  stand  fast  in  the  Lord.  For  what  thanks  can 
we  render  to  God  again  for  you,  for  all  the  joy 
wherewith  we  joy  for  your  sakes  before  our  God  ?" 


272  CHRISTIAN  JOY. 

Christian  !  the  same  promise  is  made  to  you, 
and  may  be  realised  in  your  experience ;  for  it 
was  given  by  the  Saviour  not  only  to  the  first 
apostles,  but  to  all  "  who  should  believe  on  Him 
through  their  word/' 

"  I  will  see  you  again,"  is  the  assurance  of 
Jesus  to  every  troubled  disciple.  When  the 
consciousness  of  guilt  and  wrong-doing  burdens 
the  soul,  and  causes  it  to  tremble  and  be  afraid, 
then  does  the  vision  of  Jesus,  as  the  sin-offering, 
— the  Lamb  of  God, — the  Burden-bearer, — the 
sympathising  High-priest,  and  all-prevailing 
Intercessor,  impart  peace  and  joy.  The  Chris- 
tian is  enabled — even  when  conscious  of  his 
own  sinfulness — to  look  by  faith  to  Him  who 
"  bore  our  sins  in  His  own  body  on  the  tree," — 
who  bore,  in  His  own  death,  the  punishment 
that  would  have  crushed  us  to  all  eternity,  and 
he  can  take  up  the  language  of  the  apostle, 
"Who  loved  me,  and  gave  Himself  for  me." 
There  is  the  happy,  peaceful  consciousness  of 
sin  pardoned, — guilt  blotted, — iniquity  done 
away, — through  the  precious  blood  of  Christ; 
and  rilled  with  a  joy  with  which  a  stranger 
intermeddleth  not,  "the  believer  starts  afresh 
in  the  journey  of  life, — having,  like  the  fabled 


CHRISTIAN  JOY,  273 

pilgrim  dropped  his  burden  at  the  foot  of  the 
cross." 

Nor  is  this  all.  The  sense  of  pardon  and 
acceptance  through  the  blood  and  righteousness 
of  Christ,  may  well  fill  the  heart  with  joy;  but 
still  there  remain  the  seeds  of  evil,  the  sources 
of  disquiet  in  the  best  of  God's  children.  All 
our  doings  are  defiled  with  sin  and  imperfection, 
— the  very  holiest  act  we  perform  has  need  to 
be  atoned  for  by  the  atoning  blood  of  Christ, 
ere  it  can  find  acceptance  with  God. 

And  it  is  only  by  daily  walking  with  Jesus, 
— looking  ever  to  Him  for  grace  and  strength, 
— leaning  ever  on  His  arm,  and  relying  ever  on 
His  aid,  that  we  can  hope  to  do  what  is  right 
or  well-pleasing  in  the  sight  of  God,  or  to  have 
in  our  own  hearts  "  peace  and  joy  in  the  Holy 
Ghost.' '  "  Whatsoever  ye  do  in  word  or  deed, 
do  all  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus."  But 
oh  I  how  comforting,  how  animating  the  thought 
that  in  the  exercise  of  a  living  faith,  we  may 
have  the  Saviour  ever  with  us, — yea,  abiding 
in  our  hearts — nearer,  closer  to  us  than  the 
dearest  earthly  friend, — that  thus  we  may  see 
Him  in  our  joys  and  sorrows, — our  duties  and 
trials, — in  the  means  of  grace  and  in  His  living 

s 


274  CHRISTIAN  JOY. 

word, — that  we  may  at  any  moment  lift  up  the 
burdened  heart  to  Him,  and  find  relief  and 
solace, — that  we  may  bring  to  Him  our  crosses 
and  temptations, — our  cares  and  anxieties,  and 
feel  assured  that  He  will  sympathise  with  us 
and  send  relief: — 

"  Though  now  ascended  up  on  high, 
He  bends  on  earth  a  brother's  eye ; 
Partaker  of  the  human  name, 
He  knows  the  frailty  of  our  frame." 

In  all  this,  there  is  to  the  Christian  an  ele- 
ment of  joy — true,  real,  spiritual  joy — a  joy 
which  supports  him  in  many  a  heavy  trial — 
which  enables  him  to  see  sunshine  where  others 
can  see  nothing  but  blackness,  and  makes  him 
lose  his  sorrows  when  he  knows  that  "all 
things  work  together  for  good  to  them  that  love 
God,  and  are  the  called  according  to  His  pur- 
pose." He  feels  that  he  has  indeed  a  Saviour 
suited  to  his  every  want, — his  utmost  need, — 
a  Saviour  in  whom  are  blended  every  tender 
trait  of  character — every  loving  and  gentle  dis- 
position he  can  desire  as  a  weak  and  feeble 
pilgrim,  travelling  amidst  dangers,  and  diffi- 


CHRISTIAN  JOY.  275 

culties,  and  sorrows,  to  the  eternal  world.  He 
sees  in  Christ  Jesus  his  Lord  and  Saviour,  a 
holiness  which  will  assuredly  render  him  holy,— 
a  justice  which  will  suffer  no  wrong  to  be  per- 
petrated, or  at  least,  in  the  end,  to  triumph, — 
a  strength  which  can  bear  all  his  burdens, — 
a  wisdom  that  can  guide  him  in  every  per- 
plexity,— a  patience  which  his  many  errors  and 
failings  will  not  exhaust, — a  tenderness  which 
will  soothe  his  heaviest  grief, — a  kindness  which 
countless  blessings  have  only  proved  and  con- 
firmed,— a  love  enduring  as  eternity. 

We  do  not  indeed  say  that  this  joy, — precious, 
comforting,  sustaining  as  it  is,  is  a  perfect  joy : 
there  is  often  a  melancholy  minor  beside  the 
loudest  song  of  praise, — a  sigh  and  a  tear  even 
in  moments  of  rejoicing.  Man  could  not  in  this 
world  bear  to  have  "  fulness  of  joy."  The  bright 
sunshine  would  be  too  much  for  him, — the  un- 
chequered  pathway  retard  his  progress  heaven- 
ward,— he  would  be  tempted  to  forget  his  God, 
— to  linger  by  the  way  in  dreamy  indolence, — 
and  to  abide  in  the  wilderness,  instead  of  "  com- 
ing up "  from  it,  "  leaning  on  the  arm  of  the 
Beloved."  And,  therefore,  sorrows  are  mingled 
in  our  cup  of  joy,  times  of  sore  trouble  and 


276  CHRISTIAN  JOY. 

anguish  succeed  our  seasons  of  gladness,  and 
the  Saviour  s  comforting  presence  is  withdrawn, 
that  we  may  more  ardently  long  for  His  return. 
Then  the  language  of  our  souls  is,  "  Oh,  that  I 
knew  where  I  might  find  Him !  Behold  I  go 
forward,  but  He  is  not  there,  and  backward,  but 
I  cannot  perceive  Him  :  on  the  left  hand,  where 
He  doth  work,  but  I  cannot  behold  Him :  He 
hideth  Himself  on  the  right  hand,  that  I  cannot 
see  Him/'  How  often,  in  such  an  hour,  has  the 
Saviour  revealed  Himself  to  His  longing  and 
disconsolate  disciples  !  how  often,  when  least 
expected,  has  He  come  to  them  again,  saying 
as  of  old  "  Peace  be  unto  you !  * — and,  clinging  to 
Him  as  if  with  the  ardour  of  a  newly  inspired 
affection, — sheltering  themselves  beneath  the 
shadow  of  His  wings,  they  have  "rejoiced  with 
an  exceeding  joy." 

Sick  one,  dear  to  Christ !  is  thy  heart  full  of 
fear  and  trembling  ?  Instead  of  joy,  art  thou 
filled  with  grief?  Oh,  look  to  Christ  by  the 
eye  of  faith, — see  Him  as  still  near  to  thee, — 
still  the  portion  of  thy  soul, — still  "  waiting  to 
be  gracious,"  thy  loving,  faithful,  and  compas- 
sionate Redeemer ;  and  "  let  not  your  heart  be 
troubled,  neither  let  it  be  afraid."     Draw  near 


CHBISTIAN  JOY.  277 

to  Him  in  sweet  and  close  communion,  lift  up 
your  burdened  heart  to  Him  in  believing  prayer, 
and  you  will  soon  find  that  "  in  His  presence  is 
fulness  of  joy" — that  He  "  will  not  leave  you 
comfortless,  but  will  come  to  you,'* — that  He 
can  satisfy  every  desire,  every  want,  every  aspi- 
ration, and  raise,  and  refine,  and  purify  them 
even  in  satisfying  them. 

Eeader  !  all  other  joy  is  transitory,  only  the 
joy  of  the  Christian  can  remain.  All  other  is 
but  for  a  season  ;  and  even  here,  when  least  ex- 
pected, the  golden  cup  of  worldly  delight  may 
be  dashed  in  pieces  from  the  lips  ;  but  this  is  a 
treasure  which  none  can  take  away.  You  may 
be  deprived  of  worldly  comforts, — you  may  be 
severed  from  those  whom  your  hearts  hold 
most  dear, — you  may  lose  health,  honour,  fame, 
but  this  promised  blessing,  this  "  joy  and  peace 
in  believing/'  is  beyond  the  reach  of  men  or 
evil  spirits.  In  the  world  through  which  you 
are  passing  you  must  expect  tribulation, — Ye 
noiv,  therefore,  may  have  sorroiv  ;  you  must  lay 
your  account  with  many  grounds  of  mourning, 
many  sources  of  disquietude.  But  let  not  your 
faith  fail — still  "  hope  in  the  Lord."  His  eye 
is  upon  you  when  encompassed  by  fears,  and 


278  CHRISTIAN  JOY. 

doubts,  and  conflict,  and  ready  to  despair.  His 
eye  is  upon  you  when,  tost  upon  affliction's 
billows,  you  tremble  lest  the  soul's  anchor  lose 
its  resting-place,  and  her  hopes  be  overwhelmed 
in  ruin.  And,  if  you  look  to  Him  by  faith,  He 
will  instantly  be  by  your  side, — He  will  "  see 
you  again "  in  the  day  of  your  trial,  and  your 
heart  shall  rejoice.  Oh,  remember  He  has 
given  tills  promise  to  every  disciple,  and  He  is 
too  faithful  ever  to  break  His  promise — "  Be- 
cause he  hath  set  his  love  upon  me,  therefore 
will  I  deliver  him ;  I  will  set  him  on  high, 
because  he  hath  known  my  name.  I  will  be 
with  him  in  trouble ;  I  will  deliver  him  and 
honour  him." 

And,  Christian,  there  is  an  hour  coming  when 
this  jot/  will  be  unspeakably  precious, — an  hour 
when  nothing  else  can  avail  to  uphold  and  com- 
fort the  soul, — an  hour,  at  the  prospect  of  which 
humanity  starts  back,  and  heart  and  flesh  fail, 
— when  an  irresistible  hand  will  tear  from  us  all 
that  is  earthly,  and  deprive  us  of  every  worldly 
honour,  jort  and  consolation.  The  Saviour 
11  will  see  vou  again,"  when  you  draw  near  to 
the  grave,  and  will  receive  your  departing  spirit 
to  Himself.     Oh,  well  may  the  sight  of  Jesus 


CHBISTIAN  JOY.  279 

11  rejoice  the  heart  *  of  the  believer,  and  lead 
him  to  say,  "  Yea,  though  I  walk  through  the 
valley  of  the  shadow  of  death,  I  will  fear  no 
evil,  for  Thou  art  with  me  ;  Thy  rod  and  staff 
they  comfort  me."  "  I  know  whom  I  have 
believed,  and  I  am  persuaded  that  He  is  able  to 
keep  that  which  I  have  committed  to  Him 
against  that  day."  I  know  what  joy  His  pre- 
sence has  imparted  already ;  I  have  looked  to 
Him,  and  He  has  given  me  light,  peace,  joy, 
hope,  salvation.  I  have  leant  upon  Him  and 
He  has  supported  and  strengthened  me.  I  know 
by  experience  the  power  of  His  arm, — the 
depth  of  His  sympathy, — the  faithfulness  of  His 
love.  I  know  what  He  will  do,  by  what  He  has 
done,  and  by  what  He  has  promised  to  do.  He 
will  support  me  in  crossing  the  swelling  of 
Jordan,  and  plant  my  feet  on  the  shores  of  im- 
mortal bliss  and  glory. 

"  Death  no  terrific  foe  appears  ; 
An  angel's  lovely  form  he  wears ; 
A  friendly  messenger  he  proves 
To  every  soul  whom  Jesus  loves." 

The  end  of  life's  journey  is  not  the  end  of 
the  Christian's  joy.     No ;  his  experience  here  is 


280  CHRISTIAN  JOY. 

but  a  foretaste  of  those  nobler  and  more  exalted 
joys, — those  purer  and  more  permanent  delights 
reserved  for  him  at  God's  right  hand.  There 
will  he  behold  the  Saviour  without  an  interven- 
ing cloud, — there  will  he  be  admitted  to  His 
full  and  immediate  presence,  and  "  be  for  ever 
with  the  Lord."  And,  oh,  if  even  here  the 
sight  of  Jesus, — the  presence  of  Jesus,  so  fills 
the  heart  with  joy,  so  quickens  our  faith  and 
enkindles  our  love,  how  great,  how  soul-satisfy- 
ing will  our  joy  be,  when  we  shall  see  Him 
whom  we  have  loved  in  life,  and  whose  love 
prepared  a  mansion  for  us  in  His  Father's 
house,  surrounded  by  His  holy  angels,  and  the 
countless  throng  of  the  redeemed,  out  of  all 
nations,  and  kindreds,  and  people,  and  tongues, 
— when  we  shall  join  patriarchs  and  prophets, 
apostles  and  martyrs,  and  all  the  elect  of  God, 
in  singing  the  song  of  Moses  and  of  the  Lamb  ! 
"  Beloved,  now  are  we  the  sons  of  God  ;  and  it 
doth  not  yet  appear  what  we  shall  be,  but  we 
know  that,  when  He  shall  appear,  we  shall  be 
like  Him ;  for  we  shall  see  Him  as  He  is." 

0  Father  of  mercies  and  God  of  all  comfort, 
our  only  help  in  time  of  need  I  fly  to  Thee  for 


CHRISTIAN  JOY.  281 

succour.  Look  upon  me,  0  Lord,  with  the  eyes 
of  Thy  mercy  ;  give  me  comfort  and  sure  confi- 
dence in  Thee ;  defend  me  from  the  danger  of 
the  enemy,  and  keep  me  in  perpetual  peace  and 
safety.  Grant  that  the  sense  of  my  present 
weakness  may  add  strength  to  my  faith,  and 
seriousness  to  my  repentance ;  that  if  it  shall 
be  Thy  good  pleasure  to  restore  me  to  my  for- 
mer health,  I  may  lead  the  residue  of  my  life 
in  Thy  fear  and  to  Thy  glory  ;  or  else  give  me 
grace  so  to  take  Thy  visitation,  that,  after  this 
painful  life  ended,  I  may  dwell  with  Thee  in  life 
everlasting. 

Be  pleased,  0  Lord,  to  give  me  a  right  dis- 
cerning of  the  things  belonging  to  my  peace. 
May  I  share  in  the  joy  which  the  Saviour  pro- 
mised as  the  portion  of  His  disciples — the  joy 
which  no  man  can  take  from  me.  Oh  let  not 
pain,  or  distress,  or  trial  of  any  kind,  sink  me 
into  despondency,  or  render  me  impatient  or 
fretful ;  but  may  I  have  grace  to  improve  every 
visitation,  so  that  I  may  be  brought  nearer  to 
Thee,  and  be  more  conformed  to  the  image  of 
my  blessed  Kedeemer.  Give  me  to  feel  that 
there  can  be  no  greater  comfort  than  to  be  made 
like  unto  Christ,  by  suffering  patiently  adver- 


282  CHRISTIAN  JOY. 

sities,  troubles,  and  sicknesses.  Help  me  ever 
to  bear  in  mind  that  my  Saviour  Himself  went 
not  up  to  joy,  but  first  He  suffered  pain ;  that 
He  entered  not  into  His  glory  before  He  was 
crucified.  May  I  be  brought  to  know  that  even 
thus  our  way  to  eternal  joy  is  to  suffer  here  with 
Christ,  and  our  door  to  enter  into  eternal  life  is 
gladly  to  die  with  Christ;  that  we  may  rise 
again  from  death,  and  dwell  with  Him  in  ever- 
lasting life. 

0  gracious  and  merciful  God,  wash  and  cleanse 
my  soul  with  the  blood  of  Thy  Son,  and  the 
graces  of  Thy  Spirit,  that  it  may  be  delivered 
from  all  the  defilements  which  it  has  contracted 
in  this  present  evil  world,  and  be  found  safe 
and  happy  in  the  hour  of  death,  and  in  the 
great  day  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Fit  me, 
0  Lord,  for  living  or  dying,  that  it  may  be  unto 
me  Christ  to  live,  and  gain  to  die ;  and  that  in 
all  things  I  may  find  cause  to  glorify  Thy  name. 
If  Thou  shalt  be  pleased  to  release  me  from  my 
present  distress,  and  to  add  to  me  a  yet  further 
term  of  life,  oh,  that  I  may  live  to  Thee,  to  do 
Thee  better  service,  and  bring  Thee  greater 
glory !  Or  if  Thou  hast  determined  that  this 
sickness  shall  be  unto  death,  prepare  me,  0 


CHRISTIAN  JOY.  283 

merciful  God,  by  Thy  grace  for  Thy  blessed 
self ;  and  grant  me  a  safe  and  peaceful  passage 
out  of  this  mortal  life  to  a  heavenly  and  im- 
mortal. Carry  me  safe  through  the  valley  of 
the  shadow  of  death,  and  let  me  find  a  joyful 
admission  into  the  everlasting  kingdom  of  my 
Lord. 

Let  me  be  Thine  in  life  and  death,  and  for 
evermore,  through  the  all-sufficient  merits  and 
mediation  of  Thy  dear  Son,  our  most  prevail- 
ing Advocate  and  Kedeemer,  Jesus  Christ. — ■ 
Amen. 


Be  patient — life  is  very  brief, 

It  passes  quickly  by ; 
And  if  it  proves  a  troubled  scene, 

Beneath  a  stormy  sky, 
It  is  but  like  the  shaded  night, 
That  brings  a  morn  of  radiance  bright. 

Be  hopeful — cheerful  faith  will  bring 

A  living  joy  to  thee, 
And  make  thy  life  a  hymn  of  praise, 

From  doubt  and  murmur  free  ; 
Whilst  like  a  sunbeam  thou  wilt  bless, 
And  bring  to  others  happiness  ! 


284  CHRISTIAN  JOY. 

Be  earnest — an  immortal  soul 

Should  be  a  worker  true ; 
Employ  thy  talents  for  thy  God, 

And  ever  keep  in  view 
The  judgment  scene — the  last  great  day 
When  heaven  and  earth  will  pass  away. 

Be  holy — let  not  sin  s  dark  stain 

Thy  spirit's  whiteness  dim — 
Keep  close  to  Jesus  'mid  the  world, 

And  trust  alone  in  Him ; 
So,  midst  thy  business  and  thy  rest, 
Thou  wilt  be  comforted  and  blest. 

Be  prayerful — ask,  and  thou  wilt  have 

Strength  equal  to  thy  day  ; 
Prayer  clasps  the  hand  that  guides  the  world: 

Oh,  make  it  then  thy  stay  ! 
Ask  largely,  and  thy  God  will  be 
A  kindly  giver  unto  thee  ! 

Be  ready — many  fall  around — 

Our  loved  ones  disappear  ; 
We  know  not  when  our  call  may  come, 

Nor  should  we  wait  in  fear  : 
If  ready,  we  can  calmly  rest ; 
Living  or  dying,  we  are  blest ! 

Anon. 


CHRISTIAN  JOY.  285 


1  CORINTHIANS  III.  22. 

If  God  is  mine,  then  present  things, 
And  things  to  come,  are  mine  ; 

Yea,  Christ,  His  Word,  and  Spirit  too: 
And  glory  all  divine. 

If  He  is  mine,  then  from  His  love 

He  every  trouble  sends  : 
All  things  are  working  for  my  good, 

And  bliss  His  rod  attends. 

If  He  is  mine,  I  need  not  fear 
The  rage  of  earth  and  hell ; 

He  will  support  my  feeble  power, 
Their  utmost  force  repeL 

If  He  is  mine,  let  friends  forsake, 
Let  wealth  and  honour  flee, — 

Sure  He  who  giveth  me  Himself 
Is  more  than  these  to  me. 

If  He  is  mine,  I  '11  boldly  pass 

Through  death's  tremendous  vale  ; 

He  is  a  solid  comfort,  when 
All  other  comforts  fail. 


286  CHRISTIAN  JOY. 

Oh,  tell  me,  Lord,  that  Thou  art  mine 
What  can  I  wish  beside  ? 

My  soul  shall  at  the  fountain  live, 
When  all  the  streams  are  dried. 


LUKE  XXII.  42. 

One  prayer  I  have — all  prayers  in  One 
When  I  am  wholly  Thine  : 

Thy  will,  my  God,  Thy  will  be  done, 
And  let  that  will  be  mine. 

All-wise,  almighty,  and  all-good, 

In  Thee  I  firmly  trust ; 
Thy  ways,  unknown  or  understood, 

Are  merciful  and  just. 

May  I  remember  that  to  Thee 

Whate'er  I  have  I  owe  ; 
And  back,  in  gratitude  from  me, 

May  all  Thy  bounties  flow. 

Thy  gifts  are  only  then  enjoy'd 
When  used  as  talents  lent : 

Those  talents  only  well  employ'd 
When  in  Thy  service  spent 


CHRISTIAN  JOY.  287 

And  though  Thy  wisdom  takes  away, 

Shall  I  arraign  Thy  will  ? 
No  !  let  me  bless  Thy  name,  and  say, 

"  The  Lord  is  gracious  still." 

A  pilgrim  through  the  earth  I  roam, 

Of  nothing  long  possess'd  ; 
And  all  must  fail  when  I  go  home, 

For  this  is  not  my  rest. 

Write  but  my  name  upon  the  roll 

Of  Thy  redeemed  above  ; 
Then,  heart  and  mind,  and  strength  and  soul 

111  love  Thee  for  Thy  love. 


xvm. 
Contentment 


Phil.  iv.  11. 

I  have  learned,  in  whatsoever  state  I  am,  therewith  to  be 
content." 


How  few  among  us  have  made  this  advance- 
ment in  knowledge  !  How  ready  are  we,  when 
anything  thwarts  our  inclinations,  disarranges 
our  plans,  or  affects  our  interests,  to  fret  and 
murmur — to  sit  down  in  gloomy  despondency, 
and  say  with  the  patriarch,  "  All  these  things 
are  against  me  !"  The  reason  is,  because  we 
have  not,  like  the  apostle,  been  "  learning/' 
Contentment  is  not  acquired  all  at  once.  It  is 
only  by  a  gradual  process  that  this  spirit  is  fos- 
tered in  us, — only  by  striving  to  bear  patiently 
the  lesser  ills  of  life — the  daily  crosses  and  vexa- 
tions which  come  upon  us — that  we  can  acquire 
the  power  of  bearing  up,  without  complaint, 
under  the  more  trying  and  oppressive  sorrows 
which,  in  the  providence  of  God,  fall  to  our 
share.  Nor  is  it  by  trusting  to  our  own  strength 
that  we  can  attain  this  happy  frame  of  mind. 
God  gives  grace  to  those  who  improve  what  they 


292  CONTENTMENT 

have  already  received.  The  oftener  He  sees  His 
child  putting  forth  the  strength  already  imparted, 
the  more  willing  is  He  to  renew  that  strength. 
It  was  so  with  the  apostle.  How  varied  had 
been  his  experience  !  and  how  strenuously  did 
he  seek,  under  every  change  of  circumstance,  to 
improve  and  manifest  the  grace  of  God  which 
had  been  given  him  !  Think  of  what  he  had  to 
undergo  whilst  "  learning/'  the  lesson  of  con- 
tentment !  In  his  journeyings  and  perils — his 
imprisonments  and  shipwrecks, — his  weariness 
and  painfullness, — his  watchings,  hunger,  thirst, 
fastings,  cold,  and  nakedness, — he  must  have 
endured  many  severe  and  painful  privations ; 
but  all  the  while  he  was  "  learning ,"  and  all  the 
while  realising  more  fully  that  the  grace  of  God 
was  sufficient  to  enable  him  to  undergo  the 
countless  trials  which  had  been  allotted.  By 
degrees  he  had  been  instructed  not  to  murmur 
at  the  allotments  of  Divine  Providence, — not  to 
be  envious  at  the  prosperity  of  others, — and  not 
to  repine  when  his  comforts  were  removed. 

And  this,  Christian,  was  no  easy  lesson.  To 
be  able  to  use  the  language  of  St  Paul  marks  a 
great  advancement  in  the  divine  life.  It  is 
often  a  trying  thing  to  see  the  wicked  prosper- 


CONTENTMENT.  293 

ing, — free  from  trouble  and  anxiety, — un visited 
by  misfortune  or  calamity  ;  and  yet,  amid  suffer- 
ing, and  sickness,  and  distress,  to  cherish  a  con- 
tented spirit — to  continue  patient  and  trustful 
and  uncomplaining.  Not  unfrequently,  alas, 
the  language  of  the  heart  is  similar  to  that  of 
David,  "  Behold,  these  are  the  ungodly  who 
prosper  in  the  world :  +hey  increase  in  riches, 
Verily,  I  have  cleanseu  my  heart  in  vain,  and 
washed  my  hands  in  innocency.  For  all  the 
day  long  have  I  been  plagued,  and  chastened 
every  morning." 

Eeader,  it  is  the  triumph  of  true  religion  that 
it  can  stand  such  a  shock — that  it  can  so  fill 
the  heart  with  peace,  so  animate  it  with  hope, 
and  so  stablish  its  faith  and  trust  in  God,  that 
trials,  reverses,  sicknesses,  and  sorrows,  only 
attract  the  believer  nearer  to  the  bosom  of  Ms 
God.  And,  in  truth,  it  is  not  strange  that  they 
should  do  so.  If  I  find  that  my  God  has  com- 
forted me  under  a  small  trial,  shall  I  not  repair 
to  Him  under  a  heavier  one  ? — if  He  has  spoken 
to  me  in  accents  of  intenser  love  while  suffering 
was  pressing  upon  me  than  at  other  times,  shall 
I  not  instantly  flee  to  Him  when  my  troubles 
return  ? — and  if  His  grace  has  brought  me  forth 


294  CONTENTMENT. 

out  of  one  affliction,  wiser,  better,  more  earnest, 
self-denying,  humble,  and  resigned,  oh,  to  whom 
should  I  rush  with  greater  eagerness  and  urgency, 
when  the  flood  of  sorrow  is  overwhelming  me, 
than  to  Him,  who,  having  "given  His  own  dear 
Son  for  me,  shall  with  Him  also  freely  give 
me  all  things"  needful  for  my  present  emer- 
gency ? 

Besides,  dear  reader,  never  forget  the  necessity 
of  trial.  Assuredly  God  does  not  send  trouble 
or  sickness  or  poverty  merely  to  fret  and  annoy 
His  children— to  render  them  unhappy  and  dis- 
contented. No  ;  but  forasmuch  as  our  natures 
are  sinful,  and  must  be  sanctified, — forasmuch 
as  we  are  wilful,  and  must  be  brought  to  obe- 
dience,— forasmuch  as  every  remnant  of  the  evil 
principle  must  be  removed,  ere  we  can  enter  the 
kingdom  of  heaven, — God  tries  His  children, 
not  by  a  steady  course  of  prosperity,  nor  by 
a  long-continued  and  uniform  adversity,  but 
by  transition  from  the  one  to  the  other.  He 
knows,  that  the  grace  which  might  be  sufficient 
for  the  day  of  sunshine,  will  not  bear  us  up  amid 
darkness  and  tempest, — that  the  virtues  which 
appear  in  the  Christian  when  all  is  serene  and 
tranquil,  might  be  crushed  and  deadened  amid 


CONTENTMENT.  295 

reverses  and  disappointments.  And,  as  it  is  His 
purpose  to  strengthen  the  Christian  character — 
to  develop  it  more  and  more,  until  it  is  fitted 
for  His  own  immediate  presence — He  makes  the 
believer's  path  one  of  varied  experiences, — of 
joy  and  sorrow, — of  health  and  sickness, — of 
prosperity  and  adversity.  But  then,  new  grace 
is  imparted  for  every  new  form  of  trial,  and  new 
traits  of  character  come  into  view  in  these  rapid 
transitions  of  life.  For,  as  the  gold  or  the 
diamond,  unsubjected  to  the  crucible  and  to 
other  agencies,  might  have  continued  to  shine 
with  steady  beauty  and  brilliancy,  but  not  with 
the  peculiar  beauty  effected  by  chemical  changes ; 
so,  in  Christian  life,  many  a  beautiful  trait  of 
character  would  have  remained  undiscovered 
throughout  unbroken  prosperity  or  long-con- 
tinued adversity.  There  might  have  been 
always  the  reality  of  religion,  but  not  that 
peculiar  manifestation  which  is  produced, in  the 
transition  from  the  one  to  the  other.  If  never 
tried  by  sickness  and  suffering,  never  would  the 
Christian  be  able  to  say  with  the  apostle,  "  I  have 
learned,  in  whatsoever  state  I  am,  therewith  to 
be  content  f  and  he  would  therefore  fail  to  pro- 
duce one  of  the  most  precious  fruits  of  religion 


296  CONTENTMENT. 

in  the  soul — the  conviction  that  God  is  right  in 
all  His  ways. 

Consider,  too,  that  many  of  the  external  evils 
are  of  our  own  choice.  We  have  brought  them 
on  ourselves.  They  are  the  fruit  of  our  own 
doings, — it  may  be  of  our  pride  and  selfishness, 
our  worldliness,  and  waywardness,  and  folly. 
Why,  then,  be  impatient  and  discontented  under 
those  evils  which  we  ourselves  have  chosen? 
Why  murmur  and  repine  because  these  trees 
have  borne  their  natural  fruit  ? 

Or,  it  may  be,  these  apparent  evils  are  beyond 
our  control.  We  have  no  power  to  prevent 
them.  Some,  indeed,  arise  out  of  the  very 
condition  of  our  nature.  And  can  we  reasonably 
expect  that  the  very  nature  of  things  should  be 
altered  so  as  to  secure  our  ease  and  comfort  ? 

Eeflect,  too,  that  the  worst  we  have  to  suffer 
is  far  less  than  we  deserve,  and  the  least  we 
enjoy  far  more  than  in  justice  we  could  expect. 
Christian,  when  you  remember  for  how  many 
years  you  lived  in  forgetfulness  of  Grod,  and  yet 
during  the  whole  of  that  period  were  nurtured 
by  His  parental  care, — when  you  consider  for 
how  long  a  time  you  continued  in  carelessness 
and  indifference,  and  yet  even  then  were  sought 


CONTENTMENT.  297 

and  found  by  the  influence  of  His  good  Spirit, 
and  brought  to  the  knowledge  and  love  of 
Christ, — when  you  reflect  how  God  has  watched 
over  you  since  you  have  received  the  Saviour 
into  your  heart — how  He  has  preserved  you 
from  dangers,  secured  you  in  seasons  of  tempta- 
tion, supported  you  in  times  of  trial,  cherished 
you  in  the  days  of  sickness,  comforted  you  in 
the  hours  of  despondency, — oh,  surely  you  have 
reason  to  be  content  and  thankful  for  the  least 
mercy,  and  to  be  patient  and  submissive  under 
the  sorest  trial ! 

Besides,  who  is  it  that  measures  out  the 
changes  in  your  earthly  lot  ?  No  cross  or  trial 
comes  to  you  but  from  a  Father's  hand,  to  whom 
you  owe  submission  and  obedience.  He  has 
appointed  your  present  lot,  and  every  ingredient 
in  your  cup  is  mingled  by  His  own  hand.  In 
whatever  state  you  now  are,  it  is  by  His  guid- 
ance that  you  have  been  led  into  it.  And  did 
you  not  promise  to  trust  Him?  Go  back  to 
the  first  Ebenezer  you  erected,  when  He  help- 
ed you, — when  by  His  Holy  Spirit  you  were 
enabled  to  say,  "  My  Lord  and  my  God  !"  See 
you  not  the  inscription,  "  Lord,  I  am  Thine,  to 
do  with  me  as  Thou  pleasest.     Lord,  keep  me, 


298  CONTENTMENT. 

for  I  trust  in  Thee."  And  now,  because  He 
has  led  you  for  a  while  in  a  thorny  path, — be- 
cause some  of  your  hopes  have  been  blasted, — 
because  everything  is  not  ordered  according  to 
your  wishes, — are  you  to  give  way  to  murmur- 
ing and  discontent  ?  Are  you  wiser  than  your 
heavenly  Guide  ?  Would  He  lay  upon  you  an 
unnecessary  burden  ?  It  may  be  a  heavy  one, 
— long  and  painful  sickness, — days  and  nights 
of  weariness  and  anguish.  What  then?  AH 
was  "  needed."  Thou  art  pained, — yes ;  but 
look  not  at  what  thou  art  suffering,  but  at  what 
thou  hast  deserved  to  suffer.  "  Why  should  a 
living  man  complain  ?  "  Hast  thou  received  no 
proofs  of  Gods  tender  mercy  ?  God  always,  to 
His  own  children,  sends  His  staff  with  His  rod, 
His  grace  with  His  affliction  ;  and  if  thou  hast 
not  realised  that  support  in  the  time  of  greatest 
extremity,  it  is  not  because  it  is  wanting  to 
thee,  but  because  thou  art  wanting  to  it,  to  lay 
hold  upon  it  and  to  improve  it. 

And  yet  again,  Christian,  hath  not  God  given 
the  greatest  pledge  of  His  love  and  goodness 
that  the  most  doubting  and  craving  heart  could 
desire,  even  His  beloved  Son,  to  be  our  sacrifice? 
and  "  how  shall  He  not  with  Him  also  freely 


CONTENTMENT.  299 

give  us  all  things?"  His  own  dear  Son  was 
given  to  the  death  for  us.  Can  we  then  for  a 
moment  doubt  that  He  will  order  all  things  for 
our  real  good?  And  when  we  think  of  the 
Saviour's  sufferings  for  our  sakes, — how  patient- 
ly, how  uncomplainingly  He  bore  His  unparal- 
leled sorrows, — oh,  surely  we  ought  to  strive  to 
imitate  His  example ! — surely  we  have  reason 
to  be  contented  to  be  conformed  and  subject  to 
the  condition  of  the  Captain  of  our  salvation ! 
As  He  was  made  perfect  through  suffering,  so 
must  we,  that  if  we  suffer  with  Him,  we  may  be 
glorified  with  Him.  If,  then,  a  murmuring 
word  or  repining  thought  should  arise  in  our 
minds,  let  us  look  by  faith  upon  our  dying 
Saviour,  and  ask  our  own  hearts,  "Was  not 
His  cup  more  painful  than  mine?"  and  let  the 
remembrance  of  His  sufferings  cause  us  to 
"count  it  all  joy"  to  have  an  opportunity  of 
honouring  God  by  our  'patience  and  contentment 
with  whatever  is  meted  our  for  us. 

Let  us  also  strive  to  be  contented  with  our 
earthly  condition,  when  we  consider  that,  if 
changes  and  vicissitudes  do  come  upon  us,  if 
they  are  as  necessary  as  the  most  valued  of  our 
blessings,  God  has  also  furnished  daily  helps, 


300  CONTENTMENT 

that  we  may  bear  them  patiently  and  content- 
edly. He  hath  given  us  divine  and  heavenly 
consolations  in  His  blessed  Word.  He  hath 
promised  the  assurance  of  His  love  and  good- 
ness, and  the  light  of  His  countenance,  to  carry 
us  with  comfort  and  dependence  upon  Him 
amid  them  all.  He  hath  set  before  us  bright 
examples  of  patience  in  various  trying  conditions 
of  life,  where  we  can  trace  the  design  and  mean- 
ing of  the  visitation,  its  blessed  results  in  draw- 
ing the  believer  closer  to  His  God,  and  its  final 
issue  in  filling  the  soul  with  a  perfect  and  un- 
broken peace. 

And,  above  all,  contentment  ought  to  mark 
the  Christian  when  he  looks  to  the  future.  He 
is  told  that  this  world  is  not  his  home,  but  his 
place  of  trial  and  preparation  for  a  better  state. 
It  is  but  his  pilgrimage  state — his  passage,  and 
such  a  passage  as  must  be  accompanied  with 
many  vicissitudes — a  place  of  warfare — a  stormy 
sea,  through  which  he  must  pass  ere  he  can 
reach  the  haven  of  rest.  His  country,  his  home, 
his  place  of  rest  and  happiness,  lies  beyond 
death's  rising  flood,  where  there  shall  be  no 
trouble,  nor  fears,  nor  dangers,  but  eternal  and 
unchangeable    comfort — fulness    of    pure    and 


CONTENTMENT.  301 

uninterrupted  pleasures,  and  that  for  ever- 
more. 

What,  then,  though  troubles  rise  around  on 
every  side,  child  of  God,  pray  for  grace  to  be 
able  to  say,  "  In  whatever  state  I  here  am,  may 
I  be  content."  You  have  heaven  and  everlast- 
ing joy  in  prospect,  and  these  light  afflictions 
are  only  for  a  season.  Then  all  shall  be  well ; 
no  more  disappointments  and  sorrows ;  no  more 
dark  and  stormy  days ;  but  the  unclouded  vision 
— the  enjoyment  of  the  presence  of  your  God — 
a  joy  unspeakable  and  full  of  glory. 

Leave  God  to  deal  with  you;  and  though 
He  cause  grief,  yet  will  He  have  compassion 
according  to  the  multitude  of  His  mercies ;  for 
He  doth  not  afflict  willingly,  nor  grieve  the 
children  of  men.  Submit  yourself  willingly  to 
the  hand  of  your  heavenly  Father,  to  assign 
you  prosperity  or  to  visit  with  adversity — to 
bestow  health  or  to  send  sickness;  and  then, 
although  sudden  passions  of  impatience  and  dis- 
content may  sometimes,  like  clouds,  arise  and 
trouble  you  for  a  while,  yet  this  faith  in  God, 
and  this  hope  of  future  blessedness  rooted  in 
the  heart,  will,  like  the  sun  in  yonder  heavens, 
scatter  and  dispel  them  all,  and  cause  the  mild 


302  CONTENTMENT. 

light  of  patience  and  contentment  to  shine 
through. 

"  Trust  in  the  Lord,  for  ever  trust, 
And  banish  all  your  fears." 

Trust  Him  for  the  future,  as  you  have  proved 
His  faithfulness  in  the  past.  Be  assured,  in 
regard  to  everything  that  may  yet  happen  you, 
all  is  wisely  ordered.  You  know  not,  indeed, 
what  the  future  may  bring  for  you;  but  be 
assured  that,  though  the  furnace  of  trial  is 
needed,  it  cannot  sever  you  from  Christ  your 
Saviour ;  it  cannot  change  your  Father's  love  ; 
it  cannot  weary  out  His  care.  Believe  that,  in 
the  unknown  and  uncertain  future,  there  shall 
not  be  one  storm  without  His  bidding — one 
pang  without  His  presence ;  and  stay  your  mind 
on  the  assurance,  that  "  all  things  shall  work 
together  for  good  to  them  that  love  God." 

•  Heavenly  Father,  God  of  consolation,  who 
knowest  our  frame,  and  how  little  we  can  en- 
dure, even  though  we  deserve  so  much,  be 
pleased  to  remember  me  in  mercy !  Oh  do 
Thou  either  lighten  my  sufferings,  or  increase 
my  spiritual  strength ;  and  if  Thou  dost  not  see 


CONTENTMENT.  303 

fit  entirely  to  remove  my  burden,  oh,  enable  me 
to  bear  what  Thou  art  pleased  to  lay  upon  me. 
Preserve  me  from  all  murmuring.  Give  me,  0 
Lord,  the  grace  of  contentment ;  and  let  no  re- 
pining thoughts  take  possession  of  my  soul. 

Although  Thou  hast  made  me  acquainted 
with  grief,  and  my  sickness  is  become  even  as 
my  inseparable  companion,  yet,  0  blessed  Lord, 
grant  that  I  may  not  think  it  long  to  wait  Thy 
time,  when  Thou  art  pleased  to  wait  so  long  for 
the  return  of  sinners,  and  art  ever  pitiful  and 
of  tender  mercy  !  Oh,  make  me  so  sensible  of 
Thy  kindness  and  love,  that  I  may  be  not  only 
contented,  but  thankful  under  Thy  hand  f 

Teach  me,  0  gracious  Father,  to  see  love,  as 
well  as  justice,  in  all  Thy  dealings,  that  I  may 
humble  myself  under  Thy  mighty  hand,  and 
confess  that  it  is  good  for  me  to  be  afflicted. 

Give  me  grace,  0  Lord,  patiently  to  wait  for 
Thee,  in  an  assured  expectation  that  I  shall  one 
day  see  cause  to  number  my  afflictions  among 
my  richest  mercies.  Teach  and  help  me  to 
glorify  Thee  in  the  time  of  my  visitation  ;  to 
honour  Thee  by  a  humble  submission  to  Thy 
will,  a  patient  abiding  of  Thy  rod,  and  a  faith- 
ful reformation  of  my  heart  and  life ;  that  so 


304  CONTENTMENT. 

Thou  mayest  return  to  me  with  the  visitations 
of  Thy  love,  and  show  me  the  joy  of  Thy  salva- 
tion, for  Thy  mercy's  sake  in  Christ  Jesus. — 
Amen. 


PSALM  XXXIX. 

It  is  Thy  hand,  my  God  ! 

My  sorrow  comes  from  Thee ; 
I  bow  beneath  the  chastening  rod — 

'Tis  love  that  bruises  me. 

I  would  not  murmur,  Lord — 

Before  Thee  I  am  dumb  ! 
Lest  I  should  breathe  one  murmuring  word. 

To  Thee  for  help  I  come. 

My  God  !  Thy  name  is  Love — 

A  Father's  hand  is  Thine  ; 
With  tearful  eye  I  look  above, 

And  cry,  "  Thy  will  be  mine." 

I  know  Thy  will  is  right, 

Though  it  may  seem  severe  ; 
Thy  path  is  like  unsullied  light, 

Though  dark  it  oft  appear. 


CONTENTMENT.  305 

J  esus  for  me  hath  died  ; 

Thy  Son  Thou  didst  not  spare  ; 
His  pierced  hands,  His  bleeding  side, 

Thy  love  for  me  declare. 

Here  my  poor  heart  can  rest ; 
My  God,  it  cleaves  to  Thee : 

Thy  will  is  love,  Thine  end  is  blest- 
All  work  for  good  to  me. 


2  PETER  I.  19. 

Hope  of  our  hearts,  0  Lord,  appear, 

Thou  glorious  Star  of  day  ; 
Shine  forth,  and  chase  the  dreary  night. 

With  all  our  tears,  away  I 

Strangers  on  earth,  we  wait  for  Thee  ; 

Oh,  leave  the  Father's  throne  ; 
Come  with  a  shout  of  victory,  Lord, 

And  claim  us  as  Thy  own. 

Oh,  bid  the  bright  archangel  now 

The  trump  of  God  prepare. 

To  call  Thy  saints— the  quick,  the  dead- 

To  meet  Thee  in  the  air. 

u 


306  CONTENTMENT. 

No  resting-place  we  seek  on  earth  ; 

No  loveliness  we  see  ; 
Our  eye  is  on  the  royal  crown 

Prepared  for  us  by  Thee. 

But,  dearest  Lord,  however  bright 

That  crown  of  joy  above, 
What  is  it  to  the  brighter  hope 

Of  dwelling  in  Thy  love  ? 

What  to  the  joy,  the  deeper  joy, 

Unmingled,  pure,  and  free, 
Of  union  with  our  living  Head — 

Of  fellowship  with  Thee  ? 

This  joy  e'en  now  on  earth  is  ours  ; 

But  only,  Lord,  above, 
Our  hearts,  without  a  pang  shall  know 

The  fulness  of  Thy  love. 

There,  near  Thy  heart,  upon  the  tin-one, 
Thy  ransom'd  Bride  shall  see 

What  grace  was  in  the  bleeding  Lamb, 
Who  died  to  make  her  free  I 


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